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CTV News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Replacement for Winnipeg mayor on police board to be voted on
Coun. Evan Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood) is expected to replace Mayor Scott Gillingham on the Winnipeg Police Service board. (City of Winnipeg) It appears Mayor Scott Gillingham's replacement on the police board could soon be in place. CTV News has been told a motion is set to go to city council Thursday naming Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood Councillor Evan Duncan as the next member. Duncan has previously expressed interest in the post. Duncan says he wants to make sure the men and women of the police service are supported, calling his potential appointment an 'excellent opportunity.' Gillingham campaigned he would sit on the police board but announced last month he is stepping away from the board. The mayor said the time was right now that a new police chief, Gene Bowers, is in place. The chair, and other elected member of the police board, is Councillor Markus Chambers.
Winnipeg Free Press
04-07-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Photo radar critics: slow down and pay your idiot tax
Opinion All hail the idiot tax. This week, the City of Winnipeg confirmed it is not only renewing its contract with a third party to provide photo radar equipment, but it is introducing a new generation of technology that would make it easier to install and capture better images. The current equipment consists of above-grade cameras on poles, and below-grade coils under the pavement. The cameras employ old technology, and the sub-grade equipment is degrading. Thus, it's time for an upgrade. The city's current equipment consists of above-grade cameras on poles, and below-grade coils under the pavement. The cameras employ old technology, and the sub-grade equipment is degrading. (Wayne Glowacki / Free Press files) The city, not surprisingly, is keen to get the new equipment up and running. The Winnipeg Police Service has long believed photo radar is a valuable tool that encourages people to drive more slowly in controlled areas that, in the process, makes city streets just a little safer. Coun. Markus Chambers, chair of the Winnipeg Police Board, noted that the ongoing operation of the system will pump millions of dollars into the city's cash-strapped coffers. The five-year contract, if approved by council, would cost about $25.2 million up front. However, the WPS believes it will net out $12.8 million in revenue after payments to the contractor are covered. That has prompted detractors, once again, to disparage photo radar as a 'cash grab.' Personally, I've never understood why someone would call a legally empowered program to fine people for doing something illegal a 'cash grab.' Are they suggesting that nobody should be fined doing anything illegal? Or, that we should advocate for responsible speed limits but do nothing to enforce them? Those questions remain largely unanswered by WiseUp Winnipeg, the diligent but otherwise aimless advocacy group of unknown magnitude that continues to publicly lobby against photo radar. The same goes for Christian Sweryda, a self-styled 'road safety researcher' and law student who was once tossed out of court by a judge for providing legal representation (he is not a lawyer) to an aggrieved driver fighting a photo radar ticket. Sweryda told the Free Press photo radar is 'a cash cow… It's just pure money coming in.' He's also focusing his masters of law thesis on an investigation into how the city has deliberately set speed limits too low on some streets to trap more drivers in the tentacles of the evil photo radar system. Beyond that one group and the one law student, there is no evidence of broad public opposition. That is not to say that people like photo radar; only that most of us realize that it is, as it has always been, a completely justifiable idiot tax. To understand why speed limits are important, and why photo radar ultimately makes so much sense, you need to think back to high school physics. Newton's Second Law of Motion tells us the force of an object is equal to its mass multiplied by its acceleration. Or, when applied to automobile collisions, the larger a vehicle is and the faster it is going, the greater the force exerted on another object when they collide. Those other objects can be vehicles, telephone poles, light standards, bridge abutments and — last but not least — people. Despite our frustration with slow-moving school zones, or speed limits that seem to change from 50 km/h to 60 km/h and then back again with little rhyme or reason, the faster you go, the less time you have to take evasive action or avoid colliding with another object. Photo radar is, when all is said and done, a truly objective way to enforce speed limits. The fixed camera, on a poll or in a vehicle, records the speed of a passing vehicle. If that speed is above a certain tolerance — my personal experience is that it's hard to trigger photo radar if you're going less than 10 km/h over the speed limit — then the camera activates. Clean, clear and coldly efficient. No one likes getting that plain white envelope in the mail that contains a photo radar ticket. (And, yes, I'm speaking from personal experience.) All of us speed at one time or another, and if we don't pay attention, then photo radar is there to remind us that it's a bad and ultimately costly idea to speed. Tuesdays A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world. Finally, a word about the money. Governments should always be motivated to use fines to produce a change in behaviour. The city fines people for dumping garbage in empty lots, letting a vacant house fall into disrepair and become a fire trap, and parking in a no-parking zone or lingering too long in an authorized spot. Are those cash grabs? The city is taking money away from people who break bylaws or other laws. If photo radar makes money for a cash-strapped police service, I'm all for it. I suspect many other Winnipeggers are as well. Never fret about taxes that punish idiots. Just try not to count yourself among their ranks. Dan LettColumnist Dan Lett is a columnist for the Free Press, providing opinion and commentary on politics in Winnipeg and beyond. Born and raised in Toronto, Dan joined the Free Press in 1986. Read more about Dan. Dan's columns are built on facts and reactions, but offer his personal views through arguments and analysis. The Free Press' editing team reviews Dan's columns before they are posted online or published in print — part of the our tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
10-06-2025
- CTV News
Safe Winnipeg initiative begins rolling out in West End
Winnipeg's mayor helped kick off a new initiative for safety in the city's West End. Winnipeg's mayor took to the streets to help kick off a safety initiative in the community. Scott Gillingham, along with Deputy Mayor Markus Chambers (St Norbert-Seine River) and Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) toured the West End, meeting with business owners to help start the Safe Winnipeg initiative. The initiative, announced during the State of the City Address, sees community members and emergency services work together to tackle crime in neighbourhoods. 'The residents, the business owners, they deserve a safe community,' Gillingham said. Gillingham said some businesses in the area are struggling due to rampant theft and occasional violence. He said the Safe Winnipeg initiative will allow community organizations, such as the Downtown Community Safety Partnership, to work with police and firefighters to help identify crime trends and avoid overlap in services. 'It's about better coordinating public safety so that there's a blanket of safety in the downtown and the west end and beyond,' Gillingham said. The initiative will focus on downtown, the West End and the North End neighbourhoods, as Gillingham said that is where most of the calls for service happen. He said he is open to expanding it to other areas of the city, should the need arise.
Winnipeg Free Press
09-06-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Police board chair points to growing meth problem for jump in WPS officers' stun-gun use
Winnipeg Police Service officers used stun guns more often last year, a trend some have linked to increased meth use in the community. However, one of several annual policing updates finds overall use of force remained rare. In 2024, WPS members used Tasers 524 times, including 221 instances in which the devices were presented and/or used to coerce someone, 216 times stun-gun probes were deployed (for use over a longer distance) and 87 times when the weapons were used to 'push stun' (applied while pressing the device against someone.) MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Chairman of the Winnipeg Police Board, Coun. Markus Chambers. The combined use is up from a five-year average of 262 times per year since 2019, and exceeds 302 total uses in 2023. Frequent meth use among people police interact with is believed to be a key factor in the increase, according to the chairman of the Winnipeg Police Board. 'With how bad meth is out there right now, the unpredictability of the psychosis with meth usage would signal (why) officers are using their Tasers… more than the five-year average,' said Coun. Markus Chambers. The WPS report also blames meth use for an increase in 'activated active aggression' against police, which it describes as incidents that risk causing death or 'grievous bodily harm' to police, suspects and bystanders. 'The increase has largely been attributed to encounters with individuals exhibiting the effects of methamphetamine. Individuals under the influence of methamphetamine often have a high tolerance to pain and are far less responsive to de-escalation techniques, including verbal and physical (ones),' the report says. For example, Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River) said the number of times police vehicles have been deliberately rammed into rose to 12 in 2024, up from four the previous year. 'The aggression… officers are being met with is a lot higher,' he said. Use of force report Chambers said stun guns can help keep officers and the public safe and prevent the use of more dangerous responses. The WPS report describes the electroshock weapon as a useful, and relatively safe, tool. 'The (conducted energy weapon) remains the most used intermediate weapon and most effective level of control, with the least likelihood of causing injury, compared to physical control techniques,' it notes. Overall, police were dispatched to 239,903 events last year and either presented a weapon or used force in 968 of those incidents, the report notes. That means 0.4 per cent of calls involved use of force last year, compared to a five-year average of 0.33 per cent. There were several serious incidents. Police reported six officer-involved shootings and four fatalities last year, which is above the five-year average of four shootings and two fatalities. 'One incident of a police-involved shooting is too much but we recognize each situation is a different situation,' said Chambers. JEFF DE BOOY / FREE PRESS FILES In 2024, Winnipeg Police Service officers used Tasers 524 times. Meanwhile, a separate annual report notes WPS received 93 complaints to its professional standards unit in 2024, up from a five-year average of 77.2. That number includes both external and internal complaints. It may have risen, in part, because officers are often responding to large, 'public order' events, such as protests, where participants are expressing very strong beliefs and may be angered by police involvement, said Chambers. 'Public order events are usually very emotional, highly charged. I suspect some of the increased amount (of complaints) could be from there,' he said. A third annual report notes police are engaging in pursuits with fleeing vehicles less often due to safety risks. There were 64 pursuits last year, down from 66 in 2023 and 122 in 2020, it notes. 'Pursuits are considered a last resort due to safety risks for the public, officers, and suspects. A pursuit may be justified if the suspect's escape poses a threat to human life or can cause serious injury,' the report states. Chambers said the Winnipeg Police Service helicopter also helps avoid the need for police cruisers to chase fleeing suspects. The report credits the helicopter with helping out in 11 of the 64 pursuits last year and providing 'visual containment' in 10 of those 11 cases. And the force's armoured rescue vehicle was used 87 times for tactical operations last year, responding to firearm-related search warrants, homicide investigations and abductions, among other incidents. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. In recent years, some advocates have criticized spending money on the helicopter and armoured vehicles, especially those pushing for council to divert at least some of the police budget to recreation and other priorities. Chambers stressed he believes both vehicles remain valuable policing tools. Winnipeg Police Service declined to speak about the reports until they are presented at Friday's police board meeting. X: @joyanne_pursaga Joyanne PursagaReporter Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne. Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
26-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Fitness equipment, outdoor classroom coming to Winnipeg park
Politicians and community leaders break ground as work begins on upgrades to John Forsyth Park on May 26, 2025. (Source: Scott Andersson/CTV News) Upgrades are coming to a Winnipeg park, including the addition of fitness equipment, a paved path, and an outdoor classroom. On Monday, the City of Winnipeg, Province of Manitoba, and Government of Canada broke ground on improvements planned for John Forsyth Park. The upgrades will cost $859,000, with $250,000 coming from the city, $300,000 from the province, and $200,000 from the federal government. The rest of the money will come from a Trails Manitoba grant, a Kal Tire RePlay grant, the Economic Development Council for Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities, and Assiniboine Credit Union. Coun. Markus Chambers said he expects the upgrades, including the outdoor fitness area, will become of great use to Winnipeggers, including area residents and students at École Christine-Lespérance. 'I know that with other schools in my ward, a lot of the outdoor equipment is very much utilized, especially during the summer months,' he said. 'It's an opportunity to increase lighting around here as well so that kids can play well into the evening time in the fall months.' Construction at the park is expected to be completed by August.
