The Canadian police force plays a vital role in ensuring there is an order in the communities they serve. The crime rates in Canada have been increasing over the last decade, leading to more attention on why the police force has been unable to deter them. One of the main reasons that were discovered about the same is that police forces in Canada have not been enough powers that can enable them to deal with criminals before crimes happen. This was well witnessed in the 2014 when two young men killed Canadian soldiers. The criminals were well known to the police, and their passports were even revoked, but they were never surveyed or taken to custody, which would deter the crime. Canadian police powers need to be added so that it can be possible to maximize their ability to protect citizens through preventing crimes. This paper presents five reasons why police powers in Canada should be strengthened.
First, there is much interference of the police by the court justice system over some legal activities of surveillance and custody detention of suspects. In Canada, the police are given the power to detain suspects only when they have a probable reason. However, when the police detain suspects, and later they are found to be innocent, the police officers find themselves in courts of interfering with human privacy rights. This makes many police officers fear being charged in courts for detaining innocent suspects. The police powers need to be strengthened to the point that they are not answerable to a court of laws for detention activities that suspects turned to be innocent. This power will motivate them to make sure that they can arrest suspects who would otherwise commit crimes.
Second, strong powers will enable police officers to stop crimes instant through unwarranted searches. Currently, police officers are not entitled to conduct searches in private homes and premises when they do not have a search warrant. Sometimes, the police officers encounter some activities that need to be dealt with immediately, and if delayed, it would be impossible to make an arrest. For instance, when a police officer discovers there is drug business happening in a private home. The process of getting a search warrant is long, and by the time they obtain one, the people will be through with committing the crime. This makes it a necessity for police officers to conduct unwarranted searches in private homes when they probable cause even when they do not have search warranties. This will enable them to stop many crimes in society.
Third, the police need strengthened powers for self-protection. The police arrest criminals daily, and thus they make enemies so frequent. There are several cases of homicide involving Canadian police officers in Canada. However, Canadian law limits police to carry guns when they are off duties and are only exempted when they are under threat. However, many such attacks are surprising, and they cannot know when they will be attacked. Giving them powers to have their guns always will enable them to protect themselves in times of attacks.
Fourth, strengthened police powers help them to stop criminals from committing crimes and putting their lives in danger. Some current powers will always endanger the police’s life during crimes. In Canada, a police officer is only allowed to shoot criminals for self-defense. This means they can only fire when the criminal fires. On the other hand, criminals can shoot without following any orders. The only way that police officers can counter in such activities is through the addition of powers to allow them to react by firing as long as the criminals have weapons that threaten the police.
Lastly, but more importantly, police access to powers enables them to achieve the primary goal, which is to keep and order in society. If police officer’s powers are limited, they will not be able to stop crimes, or rather criminals will not be afraid of the police as human rights laws protect them. Violent cases which involve shooting of innocent residents by criminals have been on the rise for the last five years in Canada. The police will only be able to protect people from such crimes if they can access their powers without limit.