In Search of Security: The Future of Policing in Canada LAW COMMISSION OF CANADA COMMISSION DU DROIT DU CANADA Ce document est également disponible en français : En quête de sécurité : l’avenir du maintien de l’ordre au Canada ISBN : JL2-26/2006F Catalogue : 0-662-71409-1 This Report is also available online at www.lcc.gc.ca. To order a copy of the Report, contact: Law Commission of Canada 222 Queen Street, Suite 1124 Ottawa ON K1A 0H8 Telephone: (613) 946-8980 Facsimile: (613) 946-8988 E-mail: [email protected] Cover illustration by David Badour. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, represented by the Minister of Public Works and Government Services, 2006 ISBN: JL2-26/2006E Catalogue: 0-662-42902-8 The Honourable Vic Toews Minister of Justice Justice Building 284 Wellington Street Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H8 Dear Honourable Minister: In accordance with section 5(1)(c) of the Law Commission of Canada Act, we are pleased to submit this Report by the Law Commission of Canada that examines the emergence of networks of policing in Canadian society and recommends changes to the legal and policy environment to reflect this new reality. Yours sincerely, Yves Le Bouthillier Bernard Colas President Commissioner Dr. Sheva Medjuck Mark L. Stevenson Commissioner Commissioner Roderick J. Wood Commissioner i Table of Contents Letter of Transmittal ..................................................................i Preface...........................................................................................vii Acknowledgments ....................................................................ix Executive Summary ................................................................xiii Social Change and Policing..................................................xiv The Legal and Regulatory Environment ...............................xv Re-imagining Policing in Canada.........................................xvi Chapter 1 Introduction: An Overview of Police, Policing and Security.........................................1 1.1 The Complex Nature of Contemporary Policing..............1 1.2 Networks of Policing ........................................................5 1.3 Purpose of the Report ......................................................7 1.4 The Law Commission of Canada’s Premises .....................9 1.5 Organization of the Report ............................................11 Chapter 2 Policing in Contemporary Canada ...........15 2.1 Introduction...................................................................15 2.2 Sizing-up the Public (State) Police..................................16 2.2.1 Changing Demographics ......................................18 2.3 Non-state or Private Policing..........................................20 2.3.1 Private Policing Demographics .............................24 2.3.2 Challenges Counting Private Security and Comparing to Public Police ..................................25 2.4 Hybrid Policing Institutions...........................................26 2.5 Conclusion.....................................................................30 iii Chapter 3 Networks of Policing.......................................37 3.1 Introduction...................................................................37 3.2 Mass Private Property.....................................................38 3.3 Communal Spaces..........................................................41 3.4 Evolving Governance Relationships................................44 3.4.1 Formal and Informal Cooperation........................46 3.4.2 Governance and Marketization .............................49 3.5 Conclusion: Changing Relationships Between State and Non-state Policing ............................55 Chapter 4 The Existing Legal Environment.................65 4.1 Introduction...................................................................65 4.2 The Constitutional Context ...........................................65 4.3 Powers of Arrest..............................................................66 4.3.1 Powers of Arrest as an Ordinary Citizen ...............66 4.3.2 Powers of Arrest as Agent for an Owner or Occupier and Provincial Trespass Acts ..............67 4.4 The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.................68 4.4.1 The Charter’s Limited Applicability to Private Security Officers ...................................69 4.4.2 Issues Arising from the Charter’s Limited Applicability ............................................72 4.5 Tort Law.........................................................................73 4.6 Conclusion: Issues for Law Reform ................................74 Chapter 5 Direct Regulation and Accountability of Policing.............................83 5.1 Introduction...................................................................83 5.2 Regulating Public Police.................................................84 5.2.1 Governance Bodies ...............................................84 5.2.2 Police Independence .............................................85 5.2.3 Scope of Governance Authority ............................87 5.3 External Accountability of Public Police Agencies ..........88 iv LAW COMMISSION OF CANADA 5.4 Recent Trends in Police Governance and Accountability .........................................................90 5.4.1 Police Complaints Commissions ..........................90 5.4.2 The Special Investigations Unit in Ontario...........92 5.4.3 Auditing of Police Services ...................................93 5.4.4 From Individual Punishment to Organizational Remedy ........................................94 5.5 Summary: Public Police Governance and Accountability .........................................................95 5.6 Regulating Private Security.............................................95 5.7 Governance and Regulation of Private Security ..............96 5.7.1 Contract Compliance ...........................................98 5.7.2 Legislative Reform ................................................98 5.8 Accountability ..............................................................101 5.9 Training........................................................................103 5.9.1 Influence of the Canadian General Standards Board..................................................104 5.9.2 Provincial Regulatory Training Requirements .....104 5.9.3 Security Industry Associations.............................105 5.9.4 Industry Basic Training Practices.........................106 5.10 Role and Identity Issues (Issues for Law Reform) .......107 5.11 Conclusion ................................................................108 Chapter 6 Re-imagining Policing in Canada ...........................................................119 6.1 Introduction.................................................................119 6.2 Redefining Policing ......................................................121 6.3 Protecting Democratic Ideals........................................123 6.3.1 State Responsibility.............................................123 6.3.2 Citizen Awareness ...............................................124 6.4 The Legal Context of Policing in Canada.....................126 6.5 Policing Governance and Accountability ......................128 6.5.1 Policing Boards ...................................................131 6.5.2 Policing Board Budgets.......................................134 6.5.3 Accountability.....................................................135 6.5.4 From Police Independence to Operational Responsibility..................................137 Table of Contents v 6.6 Private Security and the Public.....................................140 6.6.1 Oversight Mechanisms........................................143 6.7 Monitoring and Reviewing Change..............................144 6.8 Conclusion...................................................................146 Chapter 7 Conclusion..........................................................149 List of Recommendations...................................................151 Appendix A: Private Security and Public Police Acts and Regulations, by Province ...................................................154 Appendix B: Oversight Mechanisms for Public Policing in Canada .......................161 Appendix C: Examples of Specialized Training for Private Security..................165 Appendix D: Bibliography.................................................168 vi LAW COMMISSION OF CANADA Preface For most of the last two centuries, policing has been associated primarily with modern public police institutions. However, the contemporary reality of policing presents a rather different picture. Canada—and, indeed, much of the world—is in the midst of a transformation in how policing services are delivered and understood. Today, it is more accurate to suggest that policing is carried out by a complex mix of public police and private security. In many cases these networks of policing are overlapping, complimentary and mutually supportive. This new era of pluralized policing raises questions concerning the existing legal and regulatory environment and whether it continues to be relevant. This Report provides an opportunity to reflect on these important issues. It is meant to stimulate agencies and governments with an interest in policing to think creatively about their role within the networks of policing that currently exist in Canada. Its recommendations are aimed at governments in their capacities as lawmakers, regulators