Missing sweatpants, suspicious foliage, and a “big deal” driver in a Mercedes blocking a fast-food drive-thru.

It's not a joke. It's what North Battleford RCMP deal with on a daily basis and since October the detachment has been telling the public about its response to every call with reports that chronicle officers’ daily activities.

“It's helped people understand what really is occurring in the community and what isn't,” said Sgt. Neil Tremblay, who doesn't know of any other detachments sending out such detailed lists of their work.

The decision to regularly release police blotter details came after a series of violent crimes had the city on edge last year. In May there was a gang-related drive-by shooting and in October a man was stabbed and died in the lobby of a downtown hotel.

“We were being criticized a little bit in the local media, and I think fairly, and in the local community that they just felt we weren't really communicating what we doing effectively and there was a feeling we were hiding things from the public,” Tremblay said.

The city of 14,000 has been under scrutiny due to its level of crime but it’s fighting to ensure residents know it is a safe place to live and work.

The homicide last year was a major factor in the city's decision to change its approach. It earned a No. 1 ranking on Canada's crime severity index and now is working to counter that reputation.

“We're trying to deal with this in a more holistic matter,” said Mayor Ian Hamilton. “This is no longer a policing issue, it is a social issue.”

The city is working on a crime reduction and community mobilization strategy that Hamilton hopes to see in effect this fall. Despite the statistics he insists the city is a safe place to live.

“This (crime statistics) taints it. It doesn't really reflect properly what North Battleford has to offer.”

Guy Turcotte, founder of the Facebook group North Battleford Victims of Crime, doesn’t agree with the mayor’s assessment.

“Yes I worry about the kids,” he said. “My daughter has friends who live a block and a half away . . . if it's after 5 p.m. we drive her.”

The 1,300 members of the Facebook group use the page as a way to share stories, get advice, and keep up with crime-related news in the city.

Turcottte doesn't think the city is doing enough to fight the issues, but he has noticed a change in the RCMP.

"People were under the impression the RCMP weren't doing anything. We knew there was a lot of crime but we didn't know they were doing anything -- they were.”

That understanding, Tremblay said, is what the detachment was hoping for when it started releasing the reports.

“I had my own doubts a little bit at the beginning,” he said. “It’s like anything, because it’s new and it's additional work you kind of frown on the idea of taking it on. Has been worth it in the end? It's created a lot bigger level of trust, not just with the local media, but also with the public, so I think it's been well worth it.”