Victoria Police Department
| Victoria Police Department | |
| Abbreviation | VicPD |
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| VicPD Coat of Arms | |
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| Badge of VicPD | |
| Motto | Honour through Service |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | July 1858 |
| Employees | 349 |
| Volunteers | 78 |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | City of Victoria in the province of British Columbia, Canada |
| Governing body | Victoria Police Board |
| Constituting instrument | BC Police Act |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | 850 Caledonia Ave |
| Police Constables | 243 |
| Civilians | 106 |
| Elected officers responsible |
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| Agency executive | Jamie Graham, Chief |
| Facilities | |
| Stations |
2
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| Website | |
| http://www.vicpd.ca | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
Victoria Police Department (VicPD) is the municipal police force for the City of Victoria and the Township of Esquimalt, British Columbia, Canada. It is the oldest municipal police department in Canada west of the Great Lakes, the first Canadian law enforcement agency to deploy Tasers and creating the first digital forensic unit in the country. They are also one of the few police departments in Canada to use the G36 rifle.
VicPD is currently headed by Chief Jamie Graham (since January 1, 2009), formerly Chief Constable for the Vancouver Police Department until August 2007.[1]
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History[edit]
On July 17, 1858, Vancouver Island Governor James Douglas named Augustus Pemberton as Commissioner of Police for the then British colony. Policing in Victoria pre-dated the city's founding (1862).
Operations[edit]
The VicPD is a small police unit with two stations:
- Main Headquarters Building in Victoria 850 Caledonia Ave
- West Division in Esquimalt - shared facility with Esquimalt Fire Department and former Township of Esquimalt Public Safety Building
Neighbourhood patrol areas are:
- Esquimalt
- Panhandle
- Selkirk
- Colville
- Parklands
- Rockheights
- Devonshire
- West Bay
- Esquimalt Village
- Saxe Point
- Victoria
- Burnside
- Hillside/Quadra
- North Park
- Oaklands
- Victoria West
- Downtown
- Harris Green
- Fernwood
- North Jubilee
- Rockland
- James Bay
- Fairfield
- Gonzales
Previous VicPD headquarters:
- Bastion Square 1860-1880s
- Victoria City Hall 1880s-1918
- Fisgard Street 1918-1996[2]
Organization[edit]
Victoria Police is headed by Chief of Police Jamie Graham and has a total strength of 243 sworn officers.
Sections & Units: [3]
- Main Headquarters
- Patrol
- Focused Enforcement Team (FET)
- Bike squad
- Beat officers
- Traffic section
- CRASH reconstruction team
- Community Resource officers
- Investigative Services
- Major Crimes
- Financial Crimes
- Special Victims Unit
- Forensic Services
- Forensic Identification (IDENT)
- Computer Forensics
- Crime Prevention and Public Affairs
- Public Affairs
- Block Watch
- Volunteer Services
- Reserve Program
- Crime Free Multi-Housing Program
- Operational Planning & Support
- 911 Communication Centre
- Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team (GVERT)
- Strikeforce & Street Crime
- Exhibit Control & Purchasing
- Human Resources
- Records
- Information Technology
- West Division
- School Liaison Officers
- Youth Investigators
- Community Resource Officer
- K-9 Units
The force also recruits Reserve Constables, otherwise known as Auxiliary Constable [1].
Integrated Road Safety Unit (IRSU)[edit]
Four VicPD officers are seconded to the 15 member unit IRSU.[4] IRSU is mandated to "providing intelligence led enforcement while targeting aggressive driving behaviors, reducing alcohol-related crashes and encouraging the use of seatbelts" within the Capital Regional District.[5] This unit comprises officers from Saanich Police Department, Victoria Police Department, Oak Bay Police Department, Central Saanich Police and the RCMP under an agreement with the BC Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General and they patrol in specially marked car and are able to enforce laws outside their municipal jurisdiction.
Victoria Police Department Museum[edit]
There is an on site police museum at the Victoria police station, containing 150 years of policing artifacts from the early days of British Columbia to recent times. Hours of operations depend upon the available staff and volunteer levels. The museum is open to the general public.
In literature[edit]
Victoria resident Stanley Evans has written a series of mysteries featuring a Coast Salish character, Silas Seaweed, who works as an investigator with the Victoria Police Department.[6]
