Opinion – Cobourg Police Service – Empire or Public Service?

Pete Fisher
16 hours ago
• Categories: Editorial

When is enough enough at the Cobourg Police Service.

Time after time questions go unanswered.

It’s time for the Chair to take control of the situation.

The public should demand it.

Legitimate questions posed to he Board and the Chief go unanswered.

Likely hoping it will just go away.

With less and less media, questions that should be getting the attention don’t.

So there isn’t really much “pressure” put on the Chief Paul VandeGraaf and Board Chair Ron Kerr to answer those questions.

The latest “no-show” was about a Cobourg resident who went for assistance at the Police Service on Friday, December 13, 2024.

This wasn’t a emergency, but it was during business hours.

The front door of the police station on King Street was open, but the area to the right was locked.

Posted hours indicated the station is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, but not on this day.

Owen Sound Police Service who dispatches for Cobourg Police wasn’t even aware the front lobby was closed.

Today’s Northumberland sent a e-mail to Chief Paul VandeGraaf, Communications Manager Lisa Munday, Chair Ron Kerr and Vice-Chair Adam Bureau on Friday, December 13, 2024 asking for clarification.

Did it actually happen?

For how long?

There was a fundraising event that day – were police services assigned to that duty?

After not getting a reply over the weekend, e-mails were again sent on Monday and Tuesday.

It’s painfully obvious the service refuses to answer this simple question.

At a Police Services Board meeting that matter wasn’t brought up.

In early November, Today’s Northumberland published parts of a letter that brought up allegations of misconduct at the service from an anonymous source.

It shocked members of the service, management and the board.

With press releases coming out blasting Today’s Northumberland for publishing the unverified letter.
VandeGraaf stated publishing the letter was “irresponsible.”

“Public trust, transparency, and accountability are at the core of the police service.”

President of the Cobourg Police Senior Officers Association, Lisa Munday stated the letter was “carelessly published.”

Bringing up how the anonymous allegation may impact the “ trust and confidence” of the public and members of the police service.

Just days after the story was published, On November 7, 2024, the Chief had a “Town Hall” meeting at the Cobourg Lions Centre.

In the opening remarks the Chair of the Board spoke briefly about the letter.

Kerr reached out to the specific person who wrote the letter stating, “we encourage the member who wrote the letter to come forward and help us understand.”

Wanting to confirm what Kerr stated and that he wasn’t accidentally misreading the speech, Today’s Northumberland put forward a Freedom of Request for the speech.

Nearly a month later it was denied.

But the FOI coordinator did confirm in a later e-mail that what Kerr said in his speech was what was written.

So the Chair of the Board, who speaks for the Board and oversees the Police Service does believe the letter came from a member of the service.

That is a huge leap from the initial statements from VandeGraaf saying it was “irresponsible,” and Munday stating it was “carelessly published.”

Today’s Northumberland has said from the start, many times, the letter contains serious allegations. And they are just that – allegations.

Nothing more or less should be read into it.

But it goes without saying that if the Chair of the Police Services Board isn’t concerned enough to find out, confirm or deny and then explain to the public if the police station was, or wasn’t closed during business hours after a resident brought up their concerns, it makes the service seem more like an empire and not a public service.

Today’s Northumberland would never expect or want the service to go away – but as a resident of this town who has lived here my entire life – don’t ever expect Today’s Northumberland to walk away from asking questions that should be answered.

When the Chief of Police states that, “public trust, transparency, and accountability are at the core of the police service,” one has to wonder, are they just words or does he stand by what he said?

And when the Chair refuses to look into a simple question about whether and why the police service lobby was closed during business hours – one has to also wonder what else might be “overlooked.”