Niagara Regional Police Service - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Niagara Regional Police Service (NRPS) provides policing services for the Regional Municipality of Niagara in the Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

province of Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

.

NRPS was established on January 1, 1971 and is the oldest regional police

Regional police

Regional police are a multijuridictional police forces which cover duly recognized geopolitical regions.-Canada:Cover regional municipalities in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec.* Durham Regional Police...

service in Ontario

Ontario

. Its headquarters is located in St. Catharines.

Organization

The NRPS provides all general policing duties in the region, including patrol of municipal/regional roads and waterways within the region, including the Welland Canal

Welland Canal

The Welland Canal is a ship canal in Canada that extends from Port Weller, Ontario, on Lake Ontario, to Port Colborne, Ontario, on Lake Erie. As a part of the St...

, the Niagara River

Niagara River

The Niagara River flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the Province of Ontario in Canada and New York State in the United States. There are differing theories as to the origin of the name of the river...

and Lakes Ontario

Lake Ontario

Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...

and Erie

Lake Erie

Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...

. Patrol of provincial highways in the region, such as the Queen Elizabeth Way

Queen Elizabeth Way

The Queen Elizabeth Way, commonly abbreviated as the QEW, is a 400-Series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The freeway links Buffalo, New York and the Niagara Peninsula with Toronto. It begins at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie and travels around the western shore of Lake Ontario, ending...

, is handled by the Ontario Provincial Police

Ontario Provincial Police

The Ontario Provincial Police is the Provincial Police service for the province of Ontario, Canada.-Overview:The OPP is the the largest deployed police force in Ontario, and the second largest in Canada. The service is responsible for providing policing services throughout the province in areas...

, while patrol services on Niagara Parks Commission

Niagara Parks Commission

The Niagara Parks Commission, or Niagara Parks for short, is an agency of government of Ontario which maintains the Ontario shoreline of the Niagara River.- History :...

property is handled by the Niagara Parks Police

Niagara Parks Police

The Niagara Parks Police Service provide policing services for the Niagara Parks Commission in Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada...

. The NRPS is, however, mandated to investigate all major crimes in the region, including those that occur on provincial highways or on NPC property.

The Chief of Police

Chief of police

A Chief of Police is the title typically given to the top official in the chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. Alternate titles for this position include Commissioner, Superintendent, and Chief constable...

is Wendy Southall, who was selected by the Niagara Regional Police Services Board and assumed command in January 2005. She was a thirty year police veteran and served with the Toronto Police Service

Toronto Police Service

The Toronto Police Service , formerly the Metropolitan Toronto Police, is the police service for the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest municipal police service in Canada and second largest police force in Canada after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...

and the Niagara Regional Police Services Board. Joe Matthews currently serves as Deputy Chief, replacing Gary Beaulieu following his retirement.

The Niagara Regional Police Service is divided into six districts:

1 District - 68 Church Street, St. Catharines
2 District - 4343 Morrison Street, Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls, Ontario
Niagara Falls is a Canadian city on the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The municipality was incorporated on June 12, 1903...
3 District - 5 Lincoln Street West, Welland
Welland, Ontario
Welland is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada.The city has been traditionally known as the place where rails and water meet, referring to the railways from Buffalo to Toronto and Southwestern Ontario, and the waterways of Welland Canal and Welland River,...
5 District - 1200 Thompson Road, Fort Erie
Fort Erie, Ontario
Fort Erie is a town on the Niagara River in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located directly across the river from Buffalo, New York....
6 District - 501 Fielden Avenue, Port Colborne
Port Colborne, Ontario
Port Colborne is a city on Lake Erie, at the southern end of the Welland Canal, in the Niagara Region of southern Ontario, Canada...
8 District - 25 Bartlett Avenue, Grimsby
Grimsby, Ontario
Grimsby is a town on Lake Ontario in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. Grimsby is a part of the Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area. The majority of residents reside in the area bounded by Lake Ontario and the Niagara escarpment...

Administrative offices are located at 110 James Street in downtown St. Catharines

Downtown St. Catharines, Ontario

The downtown core of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada is defined by the city as the area between Highway 406 on the west and south, Geneva Street on the east until it reaches St. Paul Street then Niagara Street north until it meets Welland Avenue....

. Auxiliary and support services are located on Cushman Road in St. Catharines.

Units

Niagara Regional Police is broken down into units of specific responsibility. Some of these units include:

Arson Unit
Auxiliary Police
Canine Unit
Child Abuse Unit
Community Services Unit
Court Services Unit
Detective Office
Assisting Senior Citizens
Emergency Task Unit (ETU)
Explosives Disposal Unit
Forensic Services Unit
"Gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...

s, Gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...

s and Grows" Unit
Major Crime Unit
Marine Unit
Morality Unit
Polygraph Unit
Sexual Assault Unit
Street Crime Unit
Traffic Unit
Underwater Search and Recovery
Uniform Patrol Officers
Victim Services / Youth Crime

Fleet

Dodge Magnum

The Dodge Magnum name has been used on a number of different automobiles. The most recent is a large rear-wheel drive station wagon introduced in 2004 for the 2005 model year and produced through to 2008. This new Magnum is Dodge's first car to use the new Chrysler LX platform, shared with the...

Ford Taurus

The Ford Taurus is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States. Originally introduced in the 1986 model year, it has remained in near-continuous production for more than two decades, making it the fourth oldest nameplate that is currently sold in the North American...

Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor

Though the name has been officially in use since 1992, the 1978–1991 full-size LTDs and LTD Crown Victorias and 1992 updated body style used the "P72" production code designation for both fleet/taxi and police models, with the model itself being internally classified as S...

Ford Freestar

The Ford Freestar is a minivan that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company from 2004 until November 2006. It replaced the Ford Windstar for the 2004 model year. The name change accommodated Ford's strategy to rename all their cars to words beginning in F...

RIDE

Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere

Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere or RIDE is a sobriety testing program used by police in Canada. The program began in 1977 as Reduce Impaired Driving in Etobicoke and the success of the program led to the expansion across the province of Ontario....

Chrysler PT Cruiser

The Chrysler PT Cruiser is a retro styled compact automobile launched by Chrysler as a 5-door hatchback in early 2000 and as a 2-door convertible in early 2005 ....

Chevrolet Tahoe

The Chevrolet Tahoe are full-size SUVs from General Motors. Chevrolet and GMC sold two different-sized SUVs under their Blazer/Jimmy model names through the early 1990s. This situation changed when GMC rebadged the full-size Jimmy as the Yukon in 1992...

Ford Expedition

The Ford Expedition is a full-size SUV built by the Ford Motor Company. Introduced in 1997 as a replacement to the Ford Bronco, it was previously slotted between the smaller Ford Explorer and the larger Ford Excursion, but as of the 2005 model year, it is Ford's largest and last truck-based,...

Ford Explorer

The Ford Explorer is a sport-utility vehicle sold in North America and built by the Ford Motor Company since 1990, as a replacement for the smaller but related Ford Bronco II. It is manufactured in Chicago, Illinois...

Jeep Cherokee (XJ)

The Jeep Cherokee is a unibody compact SUV. It shared the name of the original full-size SJ model, but without a body-on-frame chassis, it set the stage for the modern SUV. Its innovative appearance and sales popularity spawned important imitators as other automakers began to notice that this...

Dodge Polara

The Dodge Polara was an automobile introduced in the United States for the 1960 model year as Dodge's top-of-the-line full-size car; after the introduction of the Dodge Custom 880 in 1962, the Polara nameplate designated a step below the full sized best trimmed Dodge model; the Polara that year had...

|
|1970s
|Retired, Photo
|-
| Chevrolet Caprice

Chevrolet Caprice

The Chevrolet Caprice is a full-sized automobile produced by the Chevrolet Division of General Motors in North America for the 1965 through 1996 model years. Full-size Chevrolet sales peaked in 1965 with over a million sold. It was the most popular American car in the sixties and early seventies....

|
|1970s-1998
|Retired
In August 2007, thanks to recently-introduced changes to the Ontario Highway Traffic Act, the Niagara Regional Police began replacing red strobe lights on many vehicles with new blue and red LED lights. Some vehicles with older-style light bar

Light bar

Emergency vehicle lighting refers to any of several visual warning devices, which may be known as light bars or beacons, fitted to a vehicle and used when the driver wishes to convey to other road users the urgency of their journey, to provide additional warning of a hazard when stationary, or in...

s are having reflectors and housing covers replaced to allow for blue lights.

Niagara Regional Police Service Pipes and Drums

The Niagara Regional Police Pipe Band is a grade four pipe band

Pipe band

A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term used by military pipe bands, pipes and drums, is also common....

based in Niagara Falls, Ontario

Niagara Falls, Ontario

Niagara Falls is a Canadian city on the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The municipality was incorporated on June 12, 1903...

, Canada

Canada

.

The band's Pipe Major

Pipe Major

The Pipe Major is the director of bagpipe music in a Scottish or Irish pipe band. Like Drum Major, the position of Pipe Major is derived from British Army traditions. During the early twentieth century, the term Sergeant Piper was used for the role in place of "Pipe Major".Civillian and military...

is Peter MacKenzie.

There was a grade 2 pipe band in existence until the end of the 2009 Season, led by Dave Goodall (Pipe Major) and Graham Kirkwood (Drum Sergeant), however, that group dissolved in Fall of 2009.

Niagara Regional Police Service Male Chorus

The Niagara Regional Police Service Male Chorus was formed in 1996 with the encouragement of the then Chief Grant Waddell to celebrate the force's twenty-fifth anniversary. With the sponsorship of Chief Waddell they were granted the right to perform, with distinctive pride, wearing the uniform of the Niagara Regional Police Service with flashes identifying them as their Male Chorus.

Under the musical direction of Dr Tom Inglis citizen volunteers, recruited from males over eighteen years of age, who like to sing, quickly established a reputation for excellence. In consequence from Police Memorial Services in both Ottawa and Toronto to such well know venues as Roy Thompson Hall, 100 Huntley Street, the People's Church, the World Rowing Championships and the USA/Canada Buffalo/Fort Erie Freedom Festival they have entertained on television.

But more importantly for the past fifteen years they have entertained the citizens of Niagara and southern Ontario, whenever asked to raise funds for charity and in churchs, senior's homes, recreational halls, County Fairs and Festivals to sometimes standing ovation. They have produced five CD's containing show tunes, pop music medleys, gospel music and hymns that enjoy critical acclaim.

Celebrating it's fifteenth year in conjunction with the fortieth year celebrations of the Niagara Regional Police Service the Niagara Regional Police Service Male Chorus continues to seek performance venues and new citizen volunteers to continue their reputation of excellence as they perform for the citizens of Niagara under the musical direction of Barbara Andrus with the full support of the present Chief Wendy Southall.

Niagara Regional Police Mounted Unit

Members of the mounted unit are part of the Force's Colour Guard.

There are three horses in the unit with 3 other horses retired. Only two of the three horses are owned by the NRP.

As of November 25, 2010 the Niagara Regional Mounted Unit was disbanded. The budget of $30,000.00 will be used elsewhere.

External links

Niagara Regional Police Service

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