A program that lets Winnipeg police collect evidence digitally on secure cellphones has been deemed a time-saving success and will be expanded to every front-line officer.
The “connected officer” program lets some Winnipeg Police Service officers take statements, upload video, picture and audio evidence and record notes digitally, while connecting them to information in police databases.
“Basically… all our databases are on a mobile device, so we have all the information we normally have in our office or in our cars… on our phones now. So, it brings great efficiencies, as far as information. It also gives us the ability to take audio or video statements out in the field,” said police deputy chief Gene Bowers.
Bowers said that allows immediate statements from victims and witnesses of crime, which helps police understand incidents sooner.
WPS plans to roll out the program to one district at a time and equip all front-line officers with the devices by mid-2025.
“If you see members on their phones, they’re directly (tied) into our databases and they’re doing their police work. It’s another tool in their toolbox,” said Bowers.
WPS conducted a pilot project of the idea in 2021, which the province funded an expansion of in 2022. The provincial funding also provided the devices to some officers in RCMP and rural police agencies.
Currently, 150 Winnipeg officers use the devices, said Patrol Sgt. Ritchie Miller, during a police board meeting on Friday.
The provincial government will fund the full officer rollout, which is expected to cost about $600,000, Bowers said.
He said the technology should greatly reduce the amount of time police must be pulled off the street to handle administrative tasks, such as writing “narratives” about what happened during the response to an incident. He said digital notes often quickly track the information needed to write those descriptions, which spares the need to write all details down separately.
“Those (traditional) narratives take (one to three hours) to write depending on what the incident is. So… the efficiencies (of the new program) are huge, as you can see. This was meant to get our officers back on the streets sooner,” said Bowers.
WPS said front-line officers complete an average of 58,000 narratives per year.
Bowers said the devices also allow officers to take witness statements within about five minutes instead of 30 minutes.
“That’s a huge savings. You can imagine the (traditional) drain on resources to take those statements,” he said.
Miller said the devices have also helped increase the quality of police reports and the evidence collected at a scene.
joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca
X: @joyanne_pursaga
Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter
Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.
Every piece of reporting Joyanne produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.