Saskatoon police committing three officers to curb crime in Pleasant Hill
The Saskatoon Police Service is dedicating three officers to a specialized unit to help curb crime in the Pleasant Hill neighbourhood.
Last fall, members of the Pleasant Hill Community Association asked the Board of Police Commissioners for more preventive policing resources.
A member of the Pleasant Hill Community Association told CTV News that police would need to take a different approach to build trust in the community.
"Every year, we tell the city that we need to invest in prevention in our community, (and) invest in relationships — the residents are tired of sounding like a broken record,” community association member Shane Partridge said at the time.
"We need a police presence in our community not like the other communities."
According to a report from police to the board of police commissioners on Thursday, help is now on its way.
On May 1, the service plans to move three officers from patrol to the community mobilization unit, where they’ll focus on the Pleasant Hill community.
Police Supt. Darren Pringle said there are three main components to the plan.
He said officers will consult with community members to identify key issues, while crime analysts will follow trends and find patterns in criminal activity to help police be in “the right place at the right time.”
“There is more of a sporadic nature to the crime in Pleasant Hill, which is challenging to have uniform folks in place to interdict,” he said.
“I think that’s why with this new layered approach that we’re going to be trying … it gives us a few more options, because we are potentially in the right place at the right time more often.”
Pringle said police will also use data to do “service mapping” to find where first responders are consistently being called to.
“Every police service knows crime is under reported, so is there a way to determine if crime is happening perhaps in a different way, perhaps by service response,” he said.
He said if police aren’t getting called for crimes, but ambulance or fire continue to respond to the same area, then service mapping may give police insight on “reported activity in the community.”
Pringle says the framework of this plan can be applied to other communities, if needed.
-With files from Keenan Sorokan
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Hamas rocket attack from Gaza sets off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv for the first time in months
Hamas fired a barrage of rockets from Gaza that set off air raid sirens as far away as Tel Aviv for the first time in months on Sunday in a show of resilience more than seven months into Israel's massive air, sea and ground offensive.
Grayson Murray's parents say the two-time PGA Tour winner died of suicide
Grayson Murray's parents said Sunday their 30-year-old son took his own life, just one day after he withdrew from a PGA Tour event. The family asked for privacy and that people honor Murray by being kind to one another.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Blaine Higgs 'furious' over sexual education presentation
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has shared his anger on social media over a presentation in at least four high schools.
'Inspires a sense of adventure': Sask. man conquers Mount Everest
A Saskatchewan man made it to the summit of Mount Everest earlier this month.
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
Indianapolis 500 delayed as strong storm forces fans to evacuate Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The start of the Indianapolis 500 was delayed as a strong storm pushed through the area Sunday, forcing Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials to evacuate about 125,000 fans who had already arrived for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."
Driver, 18, gets $3,000 ticket, 32 demerit points after speeding on Laval boulevard
A young driver received a hefty fine from Laval police after they say he was driving nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit.
At least 9 dead in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after severe weather roars across region
Powerful storms killed at least nine people and left a wide trail of destruction Sunday across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after obliterating homes and destroying a truck stop where drivers took shelter during the latest deadly weather to strike the central U.S.