Welcome to 2024! We are at the beginning of an exciting year for Blue Line and, by extension, you as its readers. What do we have ahead of us, you might ask? This year, we will be looking at a wide range of topics that are important to you as members of law enforcement, highlighting the achievements of your agencies, and connecting with you through new, meaningful ways. 

With that, I'd like to invite you to read the first Blue Line edition of 2024. In the January/February edition, I wanted to look at a topic that has been the subject of many conversations across Canada over the last few years, and that is drug decriminalization. In Jan. 2023, B.C. was the first Canadian province to decriminalize small amounts of illicit drugs. This three-year pilot program not only affected the public but law enforcement as well. I had the opportunity to speak with Fiona Wilson, Deputy Chief at the Vancouver Police Department and President of the British Columbia Association of Chiefs of Police (BCACP), and Neil Dubord, Chief of the Delta Police Department, about what they have seen over the last 12 months in B.C. This includes the recent Supreme Court action concerning Bill 34, Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act, that took place on Dec. 29, 2023. 

I also connected with Chief Cheryl Gervais of Treaty Three Police Service and Sgt. Chantal Larocque of Anishinabek Police Service to speak about funding crisis for Indigenous police services. In early spring 2023, funding negotiations between the federal government and the Indigenous police services of Ontario fell through. On Mar. 29, the Indigenous Police Chiefs of Ontario (IPCO), who represent nine standalone Indigenous police services, filed a human rights complaint against Public Safety Canada, claiming under-funding and under-resourcing of Indigenous police services amounted to systemic discrimination. In this article, you can hear about firsthand experiences during this funding crisis, and the hopes for the future.

Finally, you can read up on your regular columns - Case Law by Mike Novakowski, Behavioural Sciences by Peter Collins and Darren Balsom, and our Back of the Book column, written this month by Det. Mike Norman.

I hope you all enjoy the January/February 2024 edition of Blue Line. Until next time, happy reading and be well.