Mel Norton, police commission spar over soaring OT costs

Saint John’s mayor and the chair of the city’s police commission are at loggerheads over the suggestion that overtime costs are out of control at the Saint John Police Force.

Mayor Mel Norton has urged the Saint John Police Commission to explain why more than $1 million was paid out in overtime last year. The police commission’s figures show the overtime budget was exceeded by $421,000.

Jonathan Franklin, the chair of the Saint John Police Commission, said it is “nonsense” to suggest that policing costs are out of control in the city.

Franklin said police costs have barely risen over the past four years, but he has agreed to keep an eye on overtime costs.

He points to several high-profile cases that have caused the overtime budget to grow.

The Richard Oland murder investigation has been a major job for the city police force, according to the police commission's chair.

”There were 55 officers who either gave testimony or were scheduled to give testimony in court,” he said.

And in the Donnie Snook child pornography investigation, Franklin said one specialized officer billed roughly $46,000 in overtime.

“In the Snook case, it was an internet investigation … which meant that one of our members had to do a lot of overtime because there was technology involved there, as well as he had to spend a lot of time there, when things were going online,” he said.

As mayor, Norton has been trying to wrestle down policing costs. The Saint John council briefly examined switching to the RCMP and away from the municipal force.

The idea never got off the ground, but it set the tone for some bitter relations between city politicians and its police force.

Norton, who sits as a non-voting member on the police commission, said he was defending the city’s taxpayers by asking tough questions about policing costs.  

Norton said the police commission is responsible for more than just how the Saint John police force is doing its job.

"From my perspective, the commission can appreciate the good job our police officers are doing, while also holding the police force and its management accountable for the money they're spending in a ballooning overtime budget,” he said.

Norton has received support from council members.

Coun. Greg Norton said on Twitter this week that he was “disappointed” by the commission’s decision not to report back to council on what actions could be done to curtail overtime costs.

Franklin also said the cost to the taxpayers for overtime isn't nearly as much as the mayor is alleging.

He said the chief has kept the overall budget down by making cuts to compensate for overtime, such as removing four police vehicles from service.

OT data will be collected

While Franklin disagrees with the insinuation that overtime costs are out of control, he said the police commission will gather monthly information on overtime from the force.

It's not clear whether the commission will turn that information over to the public.

Further, Franklin is reluctant to identify overtime costs by officer, which is also being demanded by both Nortons.

He said those details are a matter of police operations and for the police commission.

Saint John is not alone when it comes to dealing with ballooning policing costs.

Franklin said councils across Canada are trying to rein in police budgets.

He said the upward pressure on police budgets is driven in part by court delays and mental health emergencies that no other organizations else will handle.

He said the Saint John Police Force is not wasting public funds.

“If this was a fat, expensive police force, I would be the first person to say, 'Look guys, stop it,'” he said.