Vancouver Police
by Gary Hanney
Vancouver has its own police force of just over 1,000 regular members and a support staff of 100 reserves and 269 civilians. The force is directed by a chief and 6 deputy chief constables, each responsible for a division: patrol, operational support, human resources, investigation, support services and management services. Police headquarters is at 2120 Cambie Street, the public information counter and the place to report traffic accidents are at 312 Main Street and the traffic courts are at 190 Alexander Street. Vancouver operates the 911 communications centre for the Lower Mainland, answering all emergency calls for all police, fire and ambulance.
Vancouver policing began in 1885 with one man, Jonathan Miller. He had no uniform but he did have the powers of a constable and was responsible for policing the area bounded by Cambie, Hastings, Carrall and Water Streets. In the 1886 elections his four-cell jail (which was also his cottage) served as polling booth and as council chambers for the first city council meeting. At the time of the Great Fire of 1886 the first Policing Department was formed with Police Chief John Stewart, a sergeant and 2 constables. By 1901 the force had grown to 26 men. By 1912 the force had a chief’s car, a detective car, a paddy wagon and an ambulance. (The first Police patrol car, a Hudson Speedster, appeared about 10 years later. It was acquired by the city after being seized as a stolen car from Los Angeles. The American insurance company sold it to Vancouver rather than pay for the long drive on gravel roads back to California.) On July 8, 1912, Nancy Harris and Minnie Miller were the first women hired. (Vancouver now has 120 women police officers, in almost all ranks.) In 1929 Vancouver amalgamated with South Vancouver and Point Grey and the police departments of all three municipalities merged.
Policing has come a long way since the early days; the current focus is on community-based policing: “the police and other services providers in the city working in partnership with the community to address community problems.”
Vancouver started up a bicycle squad to put officers back on the street and now have 62 members on bikes. In conjunction with the community and private business, the police have opened up 12 Community Crime Prevention Offices and other police storefronts throughout the city. Six of these are staffed with a police officer and the remainder have members dropping in.
RESERVES Vancouver operates a 100-member reserve police force which assists regular police on various assignments and works a great deal on traffic duty. Most of their work is on a volunteer basis but they do receive payment for certain duties. Recruiting age for the reserve force ranges from 18 to 55.
TRAINING The minimum age to become a Vancouver police officer is 19, and some of the qualification requirements include being a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant with a minimum of one year of university or college, and having a good driving history. The three-and-a-half-year program to become a first-class constable starts with basic recruit training at the B.C. Justice Institute. After 14 weeks it’s actual on-the-road experience with a senior police officer as a partner and field trainer. The next three years consist of more work at the academy alternating with longer terms on the street.
The Vancouver City Police training section is involved with such programs as refresher courses for the forces, promotion exams, applicants’ examinations, in-house courses and roll-call training.
DOG SQUAD Vancouver’s dog squad began in 1957 with four dogs and has grown to 17. All training for this squad is carried out in the city by the Vancouver police’s own experts. Their expertise has been recognized by other police forces in B.C. and the western U.S. which send their dogs and handlers to Vancouver for training. The squad has baseball-type collector cards featuring their dogs and handlers.’These cards are designed to get a dialogue going between children and all the dog handlers, and come in handy at the many dog shows and events the squad participates in.
MARINE SQUAD Vancouver has been operating police boats since 1912. The squad patrols more than 160 kilometres of shoreline, from the Second Narrows Bridge to Point Atkinson and along the Fraser River from the Burnaby boundary to the UBC endowment lands. The marine squad is able to cover the large area by trailering their quick-response Zodiac to where it is needed. Their main boat--VPD 99--is the R. G. McBeath, commissioned in February, 1995. This specially designed nine-metre aluminum-hull boat is powered by twin 230 h.p. super-turbo diesels and cruises at 30 knots. The main function of the squad is the enforcement of the Canada shipping act, small vessel regulations, the criminal code of Canada and the bylaws of the Vancouver Port Corporation. Other patrol boats in the area include the Coast Guard vessels moored at Kitsilano and Ports Canada Police and RCMP vessels that patrol the waters outside of Vancouver.
MOUNTED SQUAD The mounted squad has eight horses stabled in Stanley Park. They patrol the park year-round and at times patrol other areas of the city. In 1909 the first mounted officer was assigned to Stanley Park. One year later the squad was officially formed with 12 horses, and in the next two years it grew to 20 strong. From then on the size of the squad went up and down like a yo-yo until it was disbanded in 1949 to make way for more mechanized transportation. The squad was reinstated in 1951 for a royal visit, using a retired police horse and a borrowed horse. Two years later the mounted squad was again a full unit. In addition to being a very effective mode of transportation in the heavily wooded area of Stanley Park, the horses are very popular with the children and tourists that frequent the park. The squad also trailers their horses to elementary schools for the children to see, and then works the neighboring areas, assisting the patrol division.
PIPE BAND The Vancouver Police Pipe Band, begun in 1914, is the senior police band in Canada and the third in the world after the Edinburgh and Glasgow police. It is the official civic band for Vancouver. Band members travel to many national and international competitions and parades on their vacation time at their own personal expense. The band has 30 members: 15 are city police, 12 are civilians, two are firefighters and one is a member of the RCMP.
MOTORCYCLE DRILL TEAM The traffic department operates a motorcycle squad of 31 bikes. Twelve of the Harley-Davidsons are used for the very popular motorcycle drill team, which was formed in 1953. It soon became known as one of the top drill teams in the northwest, performing in numerous cities and municipalities in B.C. and the U.S. The team travels on its own time and is responsible for all the expenses involved.
SCHOOL LIAISON PROGRAM Crime prevention through education is the aim of this program, and it works. The 15 officers in the program are responsible for all of the 143 schools and 70,000 students in the city. They are each assigned high schools, and are responsible for each of the feeder elementary schools in that area.
Three officers are also assigned to the Safety Patrol Program, which got its start in Vancouver in 1935 as the School Boy Patrol. It is believed to have been the first in North America.
Parent Parking Patrol is relatively new to Vancouver. Three volunteer parents assist with the flow of traffic and students around each school both before and after classes.
VANCOUVER POLICE STOREFRONTS operation cooperation police community services centre 200 Burrard Street. Telephone: 257-3705. Monday through Friday: 8:00 A.M.-4:00 P.M. Chinatown police community services centre 18 East Pender Street. Telephone: 688-5030. Tuesday through Saturday: 10:00 A.M.-6:00 P.M. Native liaison society storefront project 239 Main Street. Telephone: 687-8411. Monday through Friday: 8:30 A.M.-4:30 P.M. Joyce street community crime prevention office 5156 Joyce Street. Telephone: 665-3406. Tuesday through Friday: 12:00 P.M.-10:00 A.M. Musqueam police visitation program 51 Street Hall, 6615 Salish Drive. Wednesdays: 10:00 A.M.-12:00 P.M. West point grey police visitation program West Point Grey Community Centre, 4397 West 2nd Avenue. Second and fourth Wednesdays of the month: 7:00 P.M.-9:00 P.M. Kitsilano visitation program Kitsilano Community Centre, 2690 Larch Street. First and third Wednesdays of the month: 7:00 P.M.-9:00 P.M. Strathcona/Hastings north neighborhood police office Strathcona Community Centre, 601 Keefer Street. Tuesday through Friday: 9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M. and 3:00 P.M.-4:00 P.M. Kerrisdale police visitation program Kerrisdale Community Centre, 5851 West Boulevard. Saturdays: 9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M. Downtown eastside neighborhood safety office 12 East Hastings Street. 9:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. and some variable hours. Gastown neighborhood police office #105 - 12 Water Street. Tuesday through Friday: 9:00 A.M.-12:00 P.M. and 1:00 P.M-4:00 P.M. Mount Pleasant crime prevention office 72 E. Broadway. Monday: 1:00 P.M.-9:00 P.M. Tuesday through Friday: 11:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. Britannia community police office Britannia Community Centre, 1661 Napier Street. Tuesday through Thursday: 4:00 A.M.-8:00 A.M., Friday: 3:00 P.M.-5:00 P.M., Saturday: 12:00 P.M.-4:00 P.M. West End community centre storefront 870 Denman St. Monday through Friday: 9:00 A.M.-8:30 P.M. Saturday 9:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. North False Creek community police centre 123 Pacific Boulevard. Monday through Friday: 11:00 A.M.-7:00 P.M. Little Mountain/Riley Park safer communities office 4438 Main Street. Saturday: 10:00 A.M.-2:00 P.M. Tuesday: 12:00 P.M.-2:00 P.M. Thursday: 4:00 P.M.-8:00 P.M. Granville street crime prevention office 916 Granville Street. Tuesday through Friday: 10:00 A.M.-3:00 P.M. Kensington police visitation program Kensington Community Centre, 5175 Dumfries Street. Every second Wednesday: 6:30 P.M.-8:30 P.M. Broadway Station community crime prevention office 2777 Commercial Drive. Monday: 12:00 P.M.-4:00 P.M.
OTHER POLICE FORCES: All other cities and municipalities that make up Greater Vancouver have their own police, usually the RCMP, but there are also city (or municipal) police departments in Delta, New Westminster, Port Moody and West Vancouver.
DELTA The municipality of Delta has its own police force of 137 members. The force is currently located in Ladner in a newly renovated building that used to house both the police and the provincial courts. The first constable for Delta was actually the municipal clerk when he was given additional police duties in 1887. A year later they hired a full time constable but it wasn’t until 1891 that he was issued a badge and a revolver.
NEW WESTMINSTER This city force got its first constable in 1873. Jonathan Morey was paid $30 per month to patrol Columbia Street during the day. In 1879 the police department grew to two members, one for each day and night shift. Among their duties was the lighting of street lamps in the early evening. Their current strength is 101 members with 16 reserve constables.
WEST VANCOUVER West Vancouver City Police got their start in May 1912. In the early days the beat was walked on foot or patrolled by an officer on a rented horse or in a taxi. For trips west of town the police rode the bus; for more distant points the constables were provided with a pass on the Pacific Great Eastern Railway. Now the department has a strength of 74 police officers and 14 reserve constables who travel in state-of-the-art transportation.
PORT MOODY Like a lot of areas, early policing here began with the B.C. Provincial Police. In 1883 Constable Sharp took up office in the old Canadian Pacific Railway station, which also housed his police cells. In 1913 the City of Port Moody was incorporated and so was its police force. Chief Constable Mills moved his one-man department into the new city hall, and took the cells too, installing them in the basement. A few years and moves later the department now sports a new building with 33 police officers and 15 reserves.
RCMP The RCMP began policing British Columbia on August 15, 1950, when the B.C. Provincial Police force was dissolved and all their duties assumed by the RCMP. This police agency is responsible for all areas of the province except those cities and municipalities that have their own police forces.
In Greater Vancouver the RCMP patrol Burnaby, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Langley, Maple Ridge, North Vancouver, Pitt Meadows, Richmond, Surrey, the UBC endowment lands, the Vancouver International Airport and White Rock. RCMP highway patrols look after Highway 99 (south from Vancouver to the U.S. border), Highway 17 (to the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal) and Highway 1 (from Capilano Road in North Vancouver to all points east).
Also in Vancouver is the British Columbia “E” Division headquarters for the RCMP. In addition to headquarters personnel, almost 300 RCMP officers are assigned to narcotics, commercial crime, customs and excise, proceeds of crime, immigration and passports, aboriginal policing and other federal jurisdictional areas. They also provide support services, including the forensic laboratory, marine and air services and the bomb squad, to all police in the province.
The RCMP operate the Canadian Police Information Centre (CIPC) in Ottawa, the central computer for all police information in Canada. CPIC is an integrated, automated system which provides police officers with tactical information on crimes and criminals and access to operational police information.
PORTS CANADA POLICE Another police force that worked in Greater Vancouver was Ports Canada Police. These officers were a federal force under the department of transport, responsible for all harbor areas under the direct control of the Canada Ports Corporation. They patrolled the north and south shores of the Port of Vancouver, Port Moody, Indian Arm and Roberts Bank, The 29 members worked in conjunction with the RCMP and Canada Customs, focussing mainly on organized crime, specifically smuggling. In March 1997 controversy arose over a federal government proposal to discontinue this force and to replace it with contracted private security personnel. The PCP’s fate at press time was uncertain, with B.C.’s attorney-general Ujjal Dosanjh protesting the change.
MOTOR VEHICLES New residents to the province must register their vehicles within 30 days to get B.C. licence plates. A period of six months is allowed to obtain a B.C. driver’s licence, unless you have an international driver’s licence, in which case a term of one year is given to obtain a new licence. Automobile insurance is compulsory in B.C. and now is sold along with the licence plates for the vehicle. In the Lower Mainland all but brand new vehicles must annually go through the motor vehicle emission-testing stations. In Vancouver and many other areas, illegally parked cars may be impounded during the rush hours, 7:00 A.M. to 9:30 A.M. and 3:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M., Monday through Friday. Many jurisdictions are implementing special lanes for buses and car or van pools. A provincial law prohibits the use of studded tires except from October 1 to April 30.
British Columbians drive under the point system. Infractions generally bring two or three points against the record of the driver and a fee is set, with more points and higher fees for more serious charges. When nine or ten points are accumulated, the driver stands a good chance of having driving privileges suspended. Fees are calculated by squaring the number of points (for example, a driver with six points pays $36--six times six). The number of points held by a driver is reduced by three each year and all points are eliminated three years from the date of the last conviction.
CHIEF CONSTABLES OF VANCOUVER John M. Stewart, 1886-1890 John McLaren, 1890-1895 John M. Stewart, 1896-1901 Sam North, 1901-1906 C. Chisholm, 1906-1907 Rufus G. Chamberlain, 1907-1912 C. Mulhern, 1913 Malcolm McLellan, 1914-1917 W. McRae, 1917-1920 J. Anderson, 1920-1924 W.W. Long, 1924-1928 W.J. Bingham, 1929-1931 C.E. Edgett, 1931-1933 John Cameron, 1933-1934 W.W. Foster, 1935-1939 D. MacKay, 1939-1945 A.G. McNeill, 1945-1947 Walter H. Mulligan, 1947-1955 G.J. Archer, 1956-1962 R.M. Booth, 1962-1968 John R. Fisk, 1968-1974 Donald R. Winterton, 1974-1981 Robert Stewart, 1981-1991 William Marshall, 1991-1994 Ray Canuel, 1994- Bruce Marshall
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