| West Vancouver Police Department | |
|---|---|
Heraldic badge of the WVPD
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Shoulder Flash of the West Vancouver Police
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| Abbreviation | WVPD |
| Motto | Serving with Honour |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | May 7, 1912 |
| Employees | 105 |
| Volunteers | 75 |
| Annual budget | $10.5 million CDN[1] |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Governing body | West Vancouver Police Board |
| Constituting instrument | |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | 1330 Marine Drive |
| Police Constables | 81[1] |
| Civilians | 24 |
| Elected officers responsible |
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| Agency executive |
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| Website | |
| http://wvpd.ca/ | |
The West Vancouver Police Department (WVPD) is the municipal police force for the district of West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
The Chief Constable for the West Vancouver Police Department is Len Goerke. Goerke joined the West Vancouver Police Department in August, 2014, after a 27-year career as a member of the Abbotsford Police Department.
The West Vancouver Police Department operates with four patrol platoons. Each patrol platoon is staffed by Constables, a Corporal, and overseen by a Sergeant. Additional, a police dog and handler accentuate the patrol platoon as well. The patrol division is supported by a Traffic; Community Policing; and an Information Services sections. Serious crimes are investigated by detectives in the General Investigation Section. Homicides that occur in the District of West Vancouver are investigated by the Vancouver Police Department. A seconded WVPD member supplements the VPD Homicide Unit.
To further augment seamless policing within the Lower Mainland region, several WVPD members are seconded to various integrated Municipal/Provincial RCMP units including; The Integrated Road Safety Unit (IRSU), the Integrated First Nations Unit (IFNU), the the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU), the Integrated Forensic Identification Section (IFIS), and the Integrated Crash Analysis and Reconstruction Service.
The West Vancouver Police Department relies on the support of civilian employees, as well as a civilian volunteer base.
On May 7, 1912 the West Vancouver City Council appointed John Teare as the first police constable. On May 28, 1912 City Council also appointed F.H. Kettle as the second constable.
The first police office was in an upstairs room in the original Municipal Hall built in 1912.
On July 9, 1912 City Council appointed a third constable, Richard Jones. The resolution read, "That Richard D. Jones be appointed constable for that section Northwest of White Cliff City without salary."
On July 23, 1912, John Teare was appointed as the Chief of Police. The resolution read, "That John Teare be hereby appointed Chief of Police with jurisdiction over all other constables within the Municipality, without salary."
The Student Work Advisory Team is composed of student volunteers. The Student team is overseen by Cpl. Jag Johal of the Community Services Unit.
The Student Work Advisory Team assists the Police at community events such as, the annual Police carnival, Community Day, and the Coho Festival.
The students also assist in crime prevention initiatives while working directly with Cpl. Johal, such as theft from auto prevention and traffic safety initiatives such as pedestrian safety.
On 26 June 2007, the police board announced that it had hired Kashmir (Kash) Heed to begin as the new Chief Constable. The department had been without a Chief Constable since the 5th of December 2006, when Scott Armstrong's position as Chief Constable was terminated. Revelations of an after-hours social gathering at the police station, and the subsequent impaired driving arrest of a West Vancouver police constable, were the speculated reasoning for Armstrongs termination as Chief Constable. The city's mayor, however, denied the two incidents were linked.
On January 21, 2009, three off duty police officers were arrested after allegations of racial abuse, assault, and participation in a robbery in downtown Vancouver. The victim was identified as Firoz (Phil) Khan, a newspaper deliveryman. The police constables were then employed by; the Delta Police Department, West Vancouver Police Department and New Westminster Police Service. On January 26, 2009, the Vancouver Police Department recommended to Crown Counsel for criminal charges to be laid against the NWPS member for assault and possession of stolen property and the WVPD officer for robbery. At the same time, the DPD officer was cleared of any wrongdoing.[2]
On January 27, 2009, the WVPD officer Griffin Gillan, was suspended with pay for 30 days the pending criminal charges.[3] On January 28, 2009, Crown counsel approved one count of robbery against Gillan.[4] Griffin Gillan was convicted of assault, and was sentenced to a 21 day conditional sentence plus six months probation. Following several disciplinary investigations, the officer was retained by the West Vancouver Police Department despite the criminal record, with a reduction in rank for one year.[5]
