RDFFG to arm bylaw enforcement officers

By Abigail Popple, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, RMG

The Regional District of Fraser-Fort George (RDFFG) board discussed a staff report on arming and providing use of force training to bylaw enforcement officers at its most recent meeting on August 21st.

After officers complete a training session, the district will provide them with equipment such as a protective vest, pepper spray, collapsible baton and handcuffs, among other items.

The Regional District did not livestream the board meeting due to technical difficulties and did not have a recording available for The Goat to review.

The staff report says the Regional District was scheduled to host a “Bylaw Officers Protective Force Option” training session in Prince George on September 15th and 16th. 

“The first step is to receive the training. The Regional District will then ensure that we have the appropriate procedures in place before equipment is purchased and distributed to our trained bylaw enforcement officers,” RDFFG Communications Manager Hilary Erasmus wrote in an email to The Goat.

The Regional District had Sheepdog Self Protection provide the training. According to the company’s website, bylaw officer protective force training includes use of force theory, education on officers’ legal authorities and obligations, and how to use handcuffs, batons and pepper spray, among other lessons.

“We educate participants on how to use the minimal amount of force necessary to preserve their health/ well-being, gain control over a subject, and/ or disengage to a position of safety,” the website reads.

The staff report says the training and equipment would reduce the risk of escalation if a bylaw enforcement officer (BEO) has a conflict with a resident.

“Force option training ensures BEOs act within legal boundaries and local government guidelines when using force. This reduces the risk of legal mistakes or excessive force, which could lead to lawsuits or loss of public trust,” the report reads.

The City of Prince George implemented similar changes two years ago when staff issued batons, pepper spray and handcuffs to the City’s bylaw officers. Director for Electoral Area H Dannielle Alan told The Goat that while the change seemed positive for Prince George bylaw enforcement officers, she was uncomfortable with the lack of board oversight on the change and wonders how much these concerns apply outside of Prince George city limits.

“The Prince George bylaw enforcement officers, after much reporting and a decision by Council, were allowed to carry pepper spray, handcuffs, batons … there had been several incidences of them being attacked, and it was a safety issue,” she said. 

“But our bylaw officers are not enforcement officers. They don’t have powers of enforcement and they don’t have the powers of arrest and detention,” Alan continued. “Our bylaw officers are dealing almost entirely with unsightly properties.”

The RDFFG staff report says bylaw enforcement officers (BEOs) in rural parts of the district may be put in danger, even when addressing unsightly premises bylaws.

“Due to the isolated rural environments, BEOs may encounter hostile or unpredictable individuals while enforcing bylaws related to property use,” the report reads. “Training in use-of-force techniques, such as de-escalation and defensive tactics, gives the BEOs the training where [sic.] it becomes necessary to protect themselves.”

The staff report includes a backgrounder with a list of instances where bylaw officers were assaulted while on duty. While the report cites one incident where two RDFFG bylaw officers were charged by a dog, the vast majority of examples come from large urban centres such as Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa.

When The Goat asked why the report said rural environments may pose a risk to officers when the examples attached mostly focused on urban areas, Erasmus said officers could experience a risk in any environment.

“The Regional District’s bylaw enforcement staff predominantly work in isolated rural environments,” she added. “Rural settings present unique dangers due to distance and/or remoteness of some properties, limited available help, poor communication infrastructure in some areas, and encounters with aggressive animals or individuals.”

During the meeting, Alan asked if there were recent incidents of aggression in rural areas prompting the training session and equipment purchases, she told The Goat.

“I asked if there was an issue where our bylaw officers have been threatened where they’d need this kind of thing,” she said. “They say that they’ve been yelled at, somebody’s been told ‘Get off my property or I’m coming back with a gun.’ But that’s verbal, and [bylaw officers] back off and they’re trained to back off and come back with the RCMP if needed.”

She added that the role of Regional District bylaw officers is to de-escalate situations, and educate and collaborate with homeowners to bring their properties into compliance. 

Since Prince George began training and arming bylaw enforcement officers, staff have reported feeling safer on the job, according to a staff report presented to City Council on September 25, 2024. 

In a City Council meeting on September 3rd of this year, staff also submitted a two-year follow up report that said bylaw officers felt the changes enhanced their workplace safety. According to the report, there has only been one instance where the equipment was used, when an officer used handcuffs on someone who had assaulted them. The RCMP took custody of the person and there were no further issues from the incident, the report says.

But while officers may feel safer being armed, Alan wonders how safe residents will feel when armed officers visit their property.

“Imagine you and your partner are building a new deck… you take out your permits because you’re doing everything lawfully and we believe in civilization and law and order,” she said. “You call in for an inspection and a building inspector rolls up with pepper spray and batons and zip ties. How safe do you feel?”

Alan added that she appreciates the work bylaw officers do and they deserve to be safe while working. However, none of B.C.’s other regional districts arm their bylaw officers, and if someone takes the Regional District to court over an officer’s use of force, the RDFFG will be in an unprecedented legal situation, she said.

“We give our bylaw officers incredible amounts of power. They can go onto a property without a warrant, without a suspicion of a crime, and do inspections. They have more power than law enforcement officers when it comes to being on someone’s property,” Alan said. “We’re very mindful of that fact and make sure that boundaries are there. I think this starts to erode those boundaries.”

That erosion of boundaries may also lead to less public trust, she added.

“Anything that creates an us-versus-them mentality is detrimental to community building,” Alan said. “As a local government, we are people’s servants, not their masters.”