The Police Services Act changes
The Police Services Act has recently undergone changes, including the suspension of police officers who engage in severe criminal activity without being compensated. I am in favor of these modifications because they instill discipline in the police force and make it possible for them to uphold the Police Services Act's regulations in order to maintain the efficiency of their operations.
The Act's goals and permissible modifications
The Act's goals include regulating Ontario's police forces and establishing disciplinary measures. (Ceyssens and Childs, 2016). As a result, the Act should have clauses that improve efficient enforcement services. Any modifications in that direction are permissible. Until recently, all provinces in Canada except Ontario did not pay officers who have been suspended for serious crime charges (Loriggio, 2017). Ontario has now joined the rest of the provinces in withholding pay for suspended officers. This move takes Ontario a step forward in maintaining discipline in the police service like other provinces (Young, 2017).
Reducing the number of suspended officers
Without the changes, the police officers used to be suspended in large numbers for various reasons. With the new provisions, the number of suspended officers will reduce. In 2016, at least 15 officers earned more than $100,000 while they served suspension (Crawley, 2017). The police boards in Ontario wanted the chiefs of police to be given the power to suspend officers without pay to promote, leading to the changes in the Ontario Police Services Act. According to Ferreira (2015), a police officer serving a suspension for three years sent a letter mocking the police service for paying in his suspension period. The ex-Waterloo Regional Police Officer received full benefits, first class pay check, and all allowances during the time he was suspended. Therefore, the suspension with pay makes the police officers feel comfortable with the suspension, so it was right to include suspension without pay in the Police Services Act.
References
Ceyssens, P., and Childs, S. (2016). Ontario Police Services Act, fully annotated. Salt Spring Island, British Columbia
Crawley, M. (2017). Suspended Police Officers make Ontario’s Sunshine List. CBC, April 04, 2017.
Ferreira, V. (2015). Dream Come True: Ex-Waterloo Regional Police Officer mockingly thanks force for paid suspension. National Post, July 14, 2015.
Loriggio, P. (2017). Police boards want chiefs to have freedom to suspend officers without pay. The Star, Feb 6, 2017.
Young, G. (2017). Chief supports suspending officers without pay. Nugget, February 9, 2017.
