Stephanie McDonald
Northern News Services
Published Monday, November 19, 2007

NUNAVUT - In the wake of the shooting death of RCMP Const. Douglas Scott in Kimmirut on Nov. 5, communities are questioning whether two-person detachments are adequate in Nunavut.

Scott was one of only two police officers in Kimmirut. He was working alone on the night he responded to an impaired driving call, when he was shot and killed. There are 15 two-person detachments in Nunavut.

"Three is the minimum you need ... otherwise you never get a break," said former RCMP officer Clare Kines.

Kines worked with the RCMP for 24 years across Canada and spent almost four years at the detachment in Arctic Bay/Nanisivik before retiring in the community.

"Most people don't understand just how much we ask of policemen in the North," he said.

With three men or women in each detachment, officers would have a chance to get away from the phone more often and spend more time with their families, he said.

Three members would also reduce the need for relief workers being flown into the community, Kines said, and would therefore reduce costs. Permanent officers understand the dynamics of a town better than a relief officer can, Kines said.

Two-person detachments are common across the country, but Nunavut presents a unique challenge, he said.

"The problem is exacerbated here because of distances between communities," Kines said.

If an officer is left alone in rural Saskatchewan and runs into trouble, the closest detachment is only 100 kilometres down the road, at the most.

In Nunavut, if an officer is shot in a community like Arctic Bay, he or she must wait for a plane to arrive and hope that the weather is good enough for it to land.

"If there were three, at least they would have a day off," said Taloyoak Mayor Jimmy Oleekatalik.

Taloyoak has a two-person detachment, with the officers working alternate shifts.

"I don't think they ever have a day off," he said.

Kines said that even when he would have a day off and could get out on the land, he would constantly be thinking of his partner.

"In two-person detachments, the members are never, never away from their job."

Sgt. Mike Toohey, media liaison with V Division, said the RCMP is constantly assessing how best its resources can be used and that it would be criticized for making a blanket decision to have three officers in each community.

"If you have three ... for six months of the year there are only two," he said. as vacations and courses mean time away.

He said not long ago there was only one officer in several of Nunavut's communities. That decision was evaluated and each community now has at least two.

He disagreed with the idea that a relief officer wouldn't know the community as well as a permanent one.

"The responsibility when you are on the ground is to get to know your community. The level of service should be no different," he said.