Lecky attends first board meeting as chief
Violent crime down, traffic incidents up in April and three new constables sworn in
Chief Sydney Lecky attended his first police services board meeting on Thursday, June 28. Born in New Brunswick and raised in Jamaica, he is a member of the Peskotomuhkati First Nation, and Timmins’ first Indigenous police chief.
Chief Lecky is a 29-year veteran of law enforcement with leadership roles in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), including his last position as the chief superintendent and commanding ocer of the Northwest Territories RCMP. He has also served as police chief of the British Columbia communities of Prince George, Terrace, and Mackenzie.
Lecky updated the board on the many meetings he’s taken since he was sworn in on May 21. Since then, he was in Calgary for a week, completing a one-year training program with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.
The chief said many Indigenous community members from the James Bay coastal communities have reached out to him, and he looks forward to meeting with them. Lecky has said serving Indigenous communities was one reason he accepted his post in Timmins.
The chief met with the mayor and city council, Timmins Victim Services, attended the Canadian Mining Expo, National Indigenous People’s Day, Helmets on Kids, and the Seniors’ Fair, organized by the Cochrane District Social Planning Council.
While there, he met with residents of Spruce Hill Lodge who invited him to a lunch at the senior’s residence on Tuesday, June 25.
“Our seniors are quite engaged and feisty individuals,” he said, adding they took the opportunity to educate him about the history of South Porcupine.
“They are very open and direct, in a great way,” Lecky told The Daily Press, following the board meeting. “They’ve all noticed and have been impacted by the public safety changes that have happened over time.”
Lecky was interested to hear from those whose families jumped into the lake, fleeing the 1911 fire of South Porcupine. “Deadman’s Point— I know where that is now,” he added.
The chief also attended the June 21 book launch for “Over My Dead Body,” by Kevin Vincent. It recounts the story of Five Nations Energy, the only Indigenous-owned transmission company in Canada.
Lecky has also been continually meeting with the police service internally, including with Acting Deputy Chief Darren Dinel.
He has been busy familiarizing himself with legal matters, including those involving the Worker’s Compensation and Insurance Board, and also met with business owners the morning of the board meeting.
“I got enlightened on some of the pressures and challenges they are feeling in the community that I certainly appreciate hearing,” Lecky said. “In strategic areas, it’s important to get their input.”
Lecky said community groups are doing a good job of reaching out to him “to oer support, insight, and enlightenment as to all things Timmins, so thank you for that.”
The board also heard from Dinel of a general decrease in violent crime in April compared to last year, in property crime and social disorder calls for service.
There were 97 trac oenses in April, a significant increase from last year, which Dinel attributed to improvements in patrol activities.
The top ten collision-prone intersections are all on Algonquin Boulevard, with the most accidents occurring when vehicles attempt to turn through red and yellow trac lights, Dinel clarified in response to a question from board member and Ward 5 Coun. Steve Black.
Statistics over a four-month period paints a dierent picture. From January to April, there was a five percent increase in violent crime, an 8 per cent decrease in property crime, and a 1 per cent decrease in social disorder calls for service this year as compared to last year.
“When we look at it in general terms, March was a month where we saw a lot of dierent violent crimes,” Dinel said, “One of the most notable ones was out on Carrigan Road.”
During that incident, ammunition, handguns and $120,000 worth of street drugs were seized, and two people arrested following a 15-hour stando at a home.
The force is in discussions with a data analyst on how to share statistics with the community on their website. A rolling twelve-month average is being considered by the board. Under former communications coordinator, Marc Depatie, monthly statistics were shared.
“We’re still having some discussion on how exactly that would look, how that would roll out and how we could put some stu out to the community on our website that would make sense, that’s fair, and doesn’t have the volatility that month-tomonth stats do,” Dinel said.
The search for a new communications representative is underway.
The board also heard of three new additions to the force, bringing the total complement to 83 with 13 more still needed.
Three new constables, Atta St. Jean, Brandon Petit and Kaitlyn St. Jacques were appointed on the afternoon of June 27, following the board meeting. The board signed their certificates of appointment, and Dinel noted he was happy to see more women recruits, adding there are two more starting their training and another five in line for the next round of training.
“Great work,” said board member Jamie Clarke, president of Tisdale Mechanical Contracting.
“We just keep adding to our roster, and if we keep this up we’re going to be exceeding what we planned on.”
Chief Lecky and Board Chair Kraymr Grenke had attended the new recruits’ graduation ceremony from Police College in Aylmer, Ontario in March.
The board heard from Dinel that three new special constables, who will provide court security and trac direction, will have their appointments renewed.