Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service
| Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service | |
|---|---|
Logo of the Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service
|
|
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1994 |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| General nature |
|
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | 309 Court Street South Thunder Bay, Ontario |
| Elected officer responsible | The Honourable Madeleine Meilleur, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services |
| Agency executive | Terry Armstrong, Chief of Police |
| Facilities | |
| Divisions | 35 |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
The Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service (NAPS) is the police agency for Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (NAN). The agency has 134 First Nations Constables who have the powers of police officers in Ontario. They are assigned to 35 detachments in NAN communities. Mr. Terry Armstrong was appointed Chief of Police effective September 3, 2013.
NAPS is the largest First Nations police agency in Canada and the second largest in North America. NAPS is responsible for a jurisdiction that includes two-thirds of Ontario, a land area approximately the size of France. NAPS receives 48% of its funding from the government of Ontario, and 52% from the government of Canada.
The Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service was formed on January 14, 1994 through a tri-partite agreement between the governments of Canada, Ontario, and the Nishnawbe-Aski Nation. The primary goal of the agreement is the establishment of an aboriginal agency to provide efficient, effective and culturally appropriate policing to the Nishnawbe-Aski communities.
The first phase of the agreement began on April 1, 1994 and lasted four years, when all First Nation constable positions were transferred from the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to NAPS. Phase two began on January 1, 1998 when Wahgoshig, Matachewan, Mattagami, Brunswick House, Chapleau Ojibwe, Chapleau Cree, Constance Lake and Aroland First Nations were transferred.
The Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service gained responsibility for the OPPs Northwest Patrol Unit on June 1, 1998, excluding the communities of Big Trout Lake, Weagamow, Muskrat Dam, and Pikangikum. An Operations Transition Committee was formed to oversee the transfer of administrative and operations matter between NAPS and the OPP. The transition was complete on April 1, 1999.
Many NAPS detachments fail to meet national building codes and many officers live in crowded conditions or lack residences in the communities in which they serve. On February 25, 2008 Chief Jonathan Soloman of Kashechewan First Nation gave the Government of Ontario 30 days to start relieving the situation or he would pull his community out of the NAPS policing agreement. On March 26, 2008, Chief Soloman extended the deadline after receiving indication that the Canadian and Ontario governments were interested in resolving policing issues in NAPS-served communities. A new policing agreement was reached in 2009 but funding for infrastructure shortcomings remains unresolved.
...
Wikipedia