Saint John’s police commission could be dissolved if a city councillor has his way.
Gerry Lowe says the force should be a city department, with the chief reporting to the CAO.
Lowe introduced a “notice of motion” at this week’s regular council meeting.
“I believe that the city would be better served if Council shifted the governance structure from an independent police commission to a city department model,” Lowe wrote in his motion.
Under the current model, Lowe said council has no oversight or input into policing matters.
While council appoints most of the commission’s board members, they do not take direction from council or the CAO.
In his motion, Lowe listed several examples of what he described as “challenges” with the police commission governance model, including:
- Lack of coordination with city-wide initiatives and other city departments
- Unclear lines of responsibility between the commission, council, and police leadership
- Limited ability to work with other city departments to respond to evolving public safety needs or crises
“If Council were to change the policing governance model in Saint John back to a municipal department, the Saint John Police Force, through the Police Chief, would report directly to the City’s CAO, who reports directly to Council. This would result in Council having oversight of the Police Force,” he wrote.
Lowe’s motion is expected to be discussed in more detail at council’s next meeting on Sept. 22.
