![Female police officer interacting with boy in a classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/cover_dulong_boy.jpg?sc=e2f0d027cc92ac4391071fab40b24367)
Vol. 80, No. 2
Life lessons Building blocks for crime prevention
Table of contents
Editorial message
![Female police officer speaking to a female student in a classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/cover_dulong_girl1.jpg?sc=403ae10bde4959ec251ab53ffdff16eb)
Getting ahead of crime
As one school director in our issue points out: "Prevention has never been glamourous." For many, it's hard to get excited about crime prevention.
News notes
![Female hands holding a smartphone displaying the partial image of a man on social media.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/social_media_eng.jpg?sc=ed24c79d007f20e522aafcdfae596fee)
Social media followers help investigators
When investigators with Nova Scotia's Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit started to worry a suspect could soon be on the run, the RCMP's social media followers may have saved the day.
![Two snowmobilers surrounded by blowing snow on barren landscape.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/trackers_snow.jpg?sc=b366844664f929b66d650847709b6d46)
Labrador RCMP say trackers can save lives
Matthew Lougheed and his snowmobiling partner hunkered down in a remote cove on the rugged coast of Labrador after bad weather and rough terrain put a premature end to their trip from Hopedale to Natuashish.
![Two police officers walk on snowy sidewalk in city.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/pathfinders-2.jpg?sc=54f773ffdce91a1855a60596aa3039a4)
Program helps police address social issues
For years, RCMP officers in Yellowknife, N.W.T. were swamped with repeat calls for social disorder offences that weren't always criminal in nature — such as an unwanted person in a mall, or someone sleeping in a vestibule.
![Two female police officers looking at a computer screen in a cruiser.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/mapping_0.jpg?sc=509a0c4eb4f592aabe4dd282d7878abb)
New mapping tool will help track offenders
York Regional Police (YRP) in Ontario will launch a new crime mapping software tool that provides a picture of all known offenders and criminal activity in an officer's area.
Cover stories
![A group of young people position rocks and sticks on a beach to start fires.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/survival_beach.jpg?sc=33611d9777cd799760f384405cb2962e)
Survival skills
Some First Nation youth in British Columbia are taking advantage of outdoor programs to learn more about the land, their culture and themselves. But the camps also provide the RCMP with a chance to connect with the communities they serve.
![Male police officer wearing mask on a street surrounded by smoke.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/fire2.jpg?sc=ab38114bf973fca1883f88d6bc7c164c)
On high alert
As wildfires roared across the forests, grasslands and towns of British Columbia last summer, a dedicated unit of RCMP officers from Aboriginal Policing Services (APS) helped Indigenous communities under siege.
![Two female police officers speaking to a man.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/g7-2.jpg?sc=5e09dfddefd13c661d320f773d30f2d6)
Small town, big event
When it's your country's turn to host a massive international event that will be the focus of the world, one thing on your long to-do list is to keep the locals informed.
![Male police officers talks to a crowd of kids in a parking lot](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/surrey-gang-sget.jpg?sc=460a4ddab2374d8e7c2cb4faf8e0f725)
Straight talk
When it comes to addressing gang violence in Surrey, B.C., RCMP officers are spending more time in elementary and middle schools.
![Group of school children and two women looking at police cruiser.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/engagement-2.jpg?sc=c402ce713c9ff4db87c6c85cfa4d34fc)
Talking terrorism
When police visit schools and talk to communities, familiar topics like bullying, drugs and internet safety are often the focus. While these issues are important, broader topics such as terrorism often get pushed to the wayside.
![Male police officer hands out pamphlets to two students.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/pocketguide.jpg?sc=b0942f106e593df065bcfe1e02f0d728)
Pocket-sized prevention
On many university campuses, sexual consent is a hot-button issue, and the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver, B.C., is no exception.
![Male child sits on his father's lap in police car, beside male police officer.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/awareness-color.jpg?sc=a691572821c521c641b8c56145f186e3)
Intervening in time
On January 29, 2017, a man entered a mosque in Quebec City, Que., and opened fire, killing six people and injuring five others as they kneeled for their evening prayers.
![Fourteen people sit around a table in a boardroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/maskwacis.jpg?sc=149913ff264a203d676a66f76018bbda)
Maskwacis intervention
In 2012, the Samson Cree Nation in Maskwacis, Alta., was in crisis. Violent crime was at an all-time high and school absenteeism was through the roof — more than 300 young people were involved in 13 gangs in the First Nations community.
![Four RCMP officers on vessel talk to four people in kayaks in open water.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/marine-kayakers.jpg?sc=156723dcdacc96a04d0ee50765b4c239)
Coastal connection
When an orphaned bear cub was found roaming the First Nations village of Oweekeno, B.C., the community called the RCMP's West Coast Marine Services unit for help.
Panel discussion
![Female police officer speaking to students in a classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/panel_depass.jpg?sc=f17dda8aff2f3f3461d75fa1e0794de1)
How can police presence in schools help with prevention?
Crime prevention and other awareness initiatives for youth — whether to stop bullying, violence, drug use or impaired driving — are often delivered by police officers in a school setting. But how effective is this approach?
Q & A
![Woman and boy sitting on log in a forest.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/walker_son.jpg?sc=8cc22cf0e600c3cd38540e44229816ab)
Bridging the gap
Maryah Walker is a community program officer at the RCMP's La Loche detachment in Saskatchewan. She was the first person in the province to hold the civilian job, a role that involves working with the community and police.
Ask an expert
![Woman pointing at map.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/expert_0.jpg?sc=896e9f6729cb9ad6924c976f506c6010)
Pinpointing patterns
To the untrained eye, crimes can seem sporadic, following no rhyme or reason. It's RCMP crime analyst Kim Audette's job to make sense of it. Amelia Thatcher spoke to Audette to see how she links crimes to help crack cases.
Detachment profile
![A female police officer examines a map next to a police cruiser parked on a road.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/pincher_creek.jpg?sc=dd92cca0a7bd46da55e2ba30f3c9973f)
Pincher Creek
Despite serving a low-crime region in southwestern Alberta that boasts some of the most iconic Canadian scenery, police officers at the RCMP's Pincher Creek detachment still deal with criminal activity and cope with natural disasters.
Training
![A female officer presents fentanyl to a police service dog on a leash.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/dog_training.jpg?sc=0000a79b98f43abf9acbabb34670d444)
Teaching a dog new tricks
Handlers with the RCMP's Police Dog Services unit spend years preparing themselves and their canine partners physically and mentally for the rigours of police work. It's a commitment to training that never stops.
Best practice
![Two male police officers stand in front of a boardroom table with other people.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/kelowna-colour_0.jpg?sc=91e16935a1b716fc538b5e41b6beb7f5)
Caught red-handed
In 2016, Sgt. Greg Woodcox noticed a spike in the number of transient, homeless and drug-dependent downtown residents caught shoplifting on surveillance video in Kelowna, B.C.
Last page
![Female police officer holding book stands in front of students in classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/gazette_crop/public/foundation-wits-1.jpg?sc=73d1e3bd7922d9e34d81c1b7d90cd0f9)
Police as teachers
Once per week, Cst. Rita Gillis sits down with a Grade 4 class in Okotoks, Alta,. and reads them a story. As part of the WITS Program, officers like Gillis use books to teach kids how to cope with bullying.
![Cover of magazine](/sites/default/files/crime-prevention_en-sm-1.jpg)
NOTE: An electronic version of this issue of Gazette magazine is available.
Masthead
- Publisher:
- Kevin Fowler
- Editor:
-
- Katherine Aldred
- Writers:
-
- Paul Northcott
Amelia Thatcher
- Paul Northcott
- Web publisher:
- Richard Vieira
- Graphic design:
- Jennifer Wale
- Translation:
- RCMP Translation Services
- Printing:
- St. Joseph Communications
- Date modified: