The Township of Laurentian Valley has received an update on local policing activities.
Earlier this month, Detachment Commander Stephan Neufeld provided a year in review for the OPP highlighting some successes in 2021 and what’s planned in 2022 and beyond.
Neufeld talked about keeping the community safe, the mental health and wellness of members and provided a detailed breakdown of charges laid and police activity.
Snapshot of Upper Ottawa Valley OPP activity in Laurentian Valley for 2021
Looking back at 2021, Neufeld says officers started the year with interprovincial border checkpoints. Another major police and community success story surrounded the charges of mischief endangering life laid against a Bonnechere Valley resident, who allegedly placed debris on a number of local roadways. Neufeld says many tips from the community helped lead to the arrest.
From 2020 to 2021, the Upper Ottawa Valley OPP laid three less seatbelt charges, there was a 17.9 percent decrease in speeding charges, distracted driving was down 39.5 percent and impaired driving charges were up 13.5 percent.
Neufeld says the decrease in distracted driving charges is not a success, noting most people will hold their cell phone in their lap instead of holding it where it’s visible for police to see.
Laurentian Valley councillors raised some concerns about the decrease in speeding tickets when it’s one of the top complaints they receive from residents. Neufeld says this is unacceptable adding the issue has been addressed and officers not pulling their weight will be held accountable.
Violent crime in Laurentian Valley rose from 56 calls in 2020 to 79 calls in 2021. Year over year, property crime calls were down from 211 to 136, with not much of a change in drug possession and other criminal code violations.
Overall, police responded to 103 less calls from 2020 to 2021.
Upper Ottawa Valley OPP cracks down on impaired driving
Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (RIDE) checks in the Upper Ottawa Valley increased by 92 percent from 2020 to 2021. Neufeld says during the first year of the pandemic, some officers were too nervous to do RIDE checks and complaints were received from residents about putting their families in danger. He adds the five year average is up 19.7 percent.
The detachment commander was asked about a recent RIDE check on Highway 148 where every vehicle was asked to blow into a roadside screening device.
Neufeld says this is called mandatory alcohol screening and can be used to catch seasoned drinkers and functioning alcoholics who may wake up already double the legal limit, but don’t smell like alcohol. Neufeld says 90 to 95 percent of the impaired charges local officers lay are alcohol related. He says officers can choose to do the traditional checkpoints where you don’t check everyone, or the mandatory screening where everyone provides a sample.
Upper Ottawa Valley OPP initiatives for 2022.
The Upper Ottawa Valley OPP has some exciting initiatives planned this year.
Neufeld talked about the Collision Reporting Centre which launched at the Pembroke detachment and got up and running in January. This is the first Collision Reporting Centre in the Ottawa Valley and one of eight across Ontario. The OPP says drivers can now report their collision to any of these locations within 48-hours. Neufeld talked about how this reduces the need to send police officers all over the county for collisions. He adds after a heavy snowfall last month over a dozen cars were in the detachment parking lot the following morning to report collisions for insurance purposes.
CAMSafe is a program that will be launching in the Upper Ottawa Valley this year. Local residents will be able to register home or business security cameras to assist police with investigations. The OPP would not have access to view your cameras, but CAMSafe would provide an online database of where cameras are located in the community.
Neufeld talked about wanting to bring Project Safe Trade to the Upper Ottawa Valley detachment in Pembroke. Project Safe Trade acts as safe place to exchange property (potentially items purchased online) in the OPP detachment parking lot.
Another project the Upper Ottawa Valley Detachment Commander hopes to bring to the area is called Project Lifesaver. Neufeld says this is a program where people who are prone to wonder off wear trackable devices which helps police locate them if they go missing. The cost for one of the watches is about $400 and yearly costs of about $10 to replace the battery and ensure the device is working. Neufeld says the detachment has applied for a grant to bring Project Lifesaver to the Upper Ottawa Valley.
(written by: Rudy Kadlec)
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