Stratford Police say four of their use of force cases reported last year involved members of the Black, Indigenous, and People of color community.
The province requires police forces across Ontario to collect data on the race of people who experienced use of force when interacting with the police.
A member of a police force must submit a report whenever they draw a handgun in the presence of a member of the public, excluding a member of the police force who is on duty, points a firearm at a person or discharges a firearm, uses a weapon other than a firearm on another person or uses physical force on another person that results in an injury requiring medical attention.
In 2021, 4 out of 51 reported cases involved members of the BIPOC community while in 2020 two out of 41 cases involving the group.
SPS says, with the support of the Police Service Board, they are taking steps to improve officers’ abilities to work within an increasingly diverse community.
That includes education, as well as wearing body-worn cameras for transparency.
