2018 Year End Report

LAMBTON GROUP POLICE SERVICES BOARD DETACHMENT COMMANDER

C.C. (CHRIS) AVERY

LAMBTON COUNTY OPP DETACHMENT 2018 Message from the Detachment Commander

Greetings! The Year 2018 was one of legislative changes,

some personnel shifts and yet encouraging stability in

Lambton County. Policing in the County continues to be

busy, facing many seasonal challenges, from our water-

ways and tourist destinations in the summer to the winter

storms affecting our travelling public

While we have had some transfers out of the County, we

have had some high quality officers transfer in. I am glad

that the Staff Sergeants in place continue to be dedicated

& committed to Lambton. They are doing a great job.

2018 saw significant changes with the legalization of Recre-

ational Cannabis for Canadians. This has sparked a host of

questions from citizens and politicians. Enforcement for improper possession and other offences

have been a learning curve for public and police alike. The government continues to plan for in-

creased marketing of this product.

There has been an increase in opioid use throughout the County. The addictions and need for

money to obtain these substances leads to theft and violent crime. Our Community Street Crimes

Unit has done an effective job in enforcement action on traffickers of these narcotics and recoup-

ing stolen property.

Our uniform members have responded to overdose occurrences and many mental health calls,

some of which are linked to opioid abuse. We continue to negotiate a partnership with Bluewater

Health, in conjunction with CMHA to increase efficiencies to aid those in with compromised mental

health.

I am pleased that most days, our members continue to “do ordinary things in an extraordinary

way”, working as a team to have a positive impact in the communities we serve. 

C.C. (Chris) Avery

Detachment Commander

LAMBTON COUNTY OPP

DETACHMENT AREA

CALLS FOR SERVICE BILLING WORKGROUPS

Drugs Includes trafficking, production, and importation of drugs in-cluding marihuana, cocaine, heroin, crystal meth or other controlled substances. It also includes occurrences related to indoor/outdoor grow labs.

Drug Possession Includes all occurrences where the most serious viola-tion is possession of marihuana, cocaine, heroin, crystal meth or other controlled substance. It al-so includes other minor drug related offences.

Operational Operational calls for service are non-criminal events that police attend to. These in-clude animal complaints, non- criminal domestic disturbances, missing persons, noise complaints, property – lost or found, sudden deaths, and assist public calls.

Operational 2 Includes false alarms, keep the peace and 911 calls/911 hang-ups. Due to the higher frequency of these calls, they have been separated out from the ‘Operational’ category and allocated a lower time standard. Traffic incidents are excluded.

Other Criminal Code Violations The majority of offences counted in the Other Criminal Code Of-fences group are criminal offences that are not directed to people or related to property. It is similar to the group that Statistics Canada uses when reporting ‘Other Criminal Code’. These in-clude prostitution, offensive weapons, bail violations, counterfeiting, disturb the peace, indecent acts, breach of probation, and bribery.

Property Crime Violations This category is similar to the group that Statistics Canada uses when reporting ‘Property Crimes’. These include arson, break and enter, theft, possession of stolen goods, mischief, identity theft, and some frauds.

Statutes & Acts Includes provincial statutes, primarily the Mental Health Act, Landlord Tenant Act and Trespass to property offences. It also includes custody dispute calls.

Traffic Includes motor vehicle collisions of all severities (property damage, personal injury and fa-talities) and road rage incidents reported to police.

Violent Crimes The majority of offences counted in the Violent Crimes group are crimes against persons. This category is similar to the group that Statistics Canada uses when reporting ‘Violent Crimes’. These include homicides, attempted murders, assaults, threats and robberies.

LAMBTON RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

LAMBTON RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

LAMBTON COLLISION REPORTING SYSTEM

LAMBTON COLLISION REPORTING SYSTEM

LAMBTON ICON (Integrated Court Offence Network)

LAMBTON CaOC (Public Complaints and Optional Categories)

LAMBTON REVENUE

LAMBTON TRAFFIC & MARINE COLLISION REPORTING SYSTEM: In 2018 Lambton OPP responded to a total of 748 Motor Ve-

hicle Collisions within the area of the Lambton communities

that make up the Lambton Group. There were 8 Fatal Colli-

sions with 1 resulting in criminal charges laid against the at

fault driver. In 6 of the fatal collisions the at fault driver died as a result of the colli-

sion. There were also 95 Personal Injury collisions with a wide range of injuries from very

minor to life threatening. Lastly, Lambton OPP responded to 653 Property Damage colli-

sions throughout the year.

LAMBTON TRAFFIC & MARINE TRAFFIC/ MARINE CAMPAIGNS / INITIATIVES: (Provincial)

Distracted driving resulted in 5 charges being laid signifi-cantly down from 30 in 2017.

Easter Long Weekend campaign resulted in 230 charges compared to 110 in 2017.

Canada Road Safety week and Victoria Day weekend resulted in 386 charges laid compared to 300 the previous year.

Canada Day Long Weekend resulted in 144 charges compared to 177 in 2017.

Civic Day long weekend resulted in 190 charges being laid compared to 116 in 2017.

Labour Day weekend resulted in 209 charges being laid compared to 135 the previ-ous year.

Fall Seatbelt Campaign resulted in 13 charges compared to 50 in 2017.

Operation impact resulted in 69 charges compared to 88 in 2017.

Festive RIDE resulted in 185 RIDE programs being conducted compared to 198 in 2017.

LAMBTON MARINE MARINE 2018 EVENTS

Bluewater Anglers Kids, Cops, and Canadian Tire Fishing Days

Kids Funfest

Jobbie Nooner (Gull Island, Lake St Clair)

Canada Day Fireworks

Mackinaw Sail Boat Races

St Clair Bluewater Offshore Powerboat Races

Civic Long Weekend

Port Huron Float Down

As you can see by the above listed Marine events the marine season is very busy. By far

the biggest drain on resources is the Port Huron Float Down event which has as many as

10,000 people participate. The Marine Unit assists the Canadian Coast Guard who are

the lead agency for this event.

LAMBTON CRIME UNIT Lambton County Crime Unit members continue to investigate

Benchmark crimes within the county of Lambton as well as

fulfilling the Provincial mandate by providing Investigative

support throughout West Region when necessary.

Lambton OPP welcomed a new Area Crime Supervisor in

2018 who is becoming more comfortable in this new leadership role. The Detective Ser-

geant has attributed the ease of this transition to the assistance of 8 experienced Detec-

tives under his command.

2018 continued to be a challenging year with a broad range of benchmark occurrences

being investigated from cheque frauds to sexual assaults to homicides. The Lambton

County crime unit continues to confront these challenges as they arise with the resilient

passion for protecting and serving the citizens of Lambton County.

LAMBTON COMMUNITY STREET CRIME UNIT

Lambton Community Street Crime Unit (CSCU) had an excit-

ing year, showing great strides and growth as individuals, as a

team and having measureable impacts in the Lambton

County communities. These impacts are a combination of ex-

perienced members in the unit facilitated with strong leader-

ship from Lambton and Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau (OCEB) Command staff

support.

Members received numerous training opportunities which included Warrant services,

Drug Investigation, Surveillance, Warrant Writing and General Investigations Techniques.

Members have further expanded their knowledge of investigating these crimes by peer

building with the more experienced and trained members of OCEB.

The following chart displays the grit and fortitude of the members to make a difference,

statistically having a positive outcome in every category.

The Lambton CSCU authored several Search Warrants and Production Orders which has

resulted in numerous people being brought to Justice. These investigations have recov-

ered stolen property valued at well over $200,000.00.

Item Report Period 2018 YTD 2017 Total

Occurrences 94 94 81

Warrants 29 29 80

Warrant Services 8 8 2

Persons Charges 72 72 53

Charges 434 434 196

LAMBTON COMMUNITY STREET CRIME UNIT

The County of Lambton is starting to face the reality of fenta-

nyl hitting our communities but the CSCU is diligently working

at stopping this drug from having a huge impact. Two partic-

ular investigations gained the two largest fentanyl seizures to

date; 32 grams and 30 grams having a potential street value

of $31,000.00 but more importantly saving lives. It could take only one tenth of a gram to

have a potential fatal result.

As 2018 comes to an end and 2019 shines upon us, Lambton CSCU will continue to work

towards common goals of representing ourselves, the OPP and our community. In 2019,

Lambton Command Staff and a member from CSCU will participate with other commu-

nity stake holders; forming the Lambton Drug and Alcohol Plan committee, hosted by

Lambton Public Health – Mental Health and Addictions Program. Being engaged within

the communities of Lambton County will continue to be a priority.

LAMBTON COMMUNITY STREET CRIME UNIT

On August 23rd, 2018, Lambton CSCU conducted an intelli-

gence led investigation leading to a targeted traffic stop of a

motor vehicle. The driver was arrested for trafficking con-

trolled drugs. Search incident to arrest of the vehicle netted

the following:

9g Heroin

45g Powdered Cocaine

32g Fentanyl Powder

8 x 30mg Morphine Tabs

1g Cannabis Resin

Cellphone

Scale

$1110.00 Cash

To date, this is the largest powder fentanyl seizure in Lambton County - Value of seized

drugs—$24,240.00.

LAMBTON COMMUNITY STREET CRIME UNIT

On September 5th, 2018, Lambton CSCU conducted an inves-

tigation into a residence located in the Town of Watford. The

investigation led to a CDSA search warrant being sought,

granted and executed resulting in four parties being arrested.

Search of all parties and the residences netted the following:

50g Methamphetamine

30g Fentanyl Powder

7g Shatter

4g Cannabis Resin

126 oz. Cannabis Bud

1 g Crack Cocaine

1 x 18mg Hydro

9 x Morphine Tabs

Cellphones

Scales

Debt Lists

stolen 12 Gauge Shotgun & Ammo

various stolen Property

$1636.00 Cash

To date this is the second largest powder fentanyl seizure in

Lambton County. Value of seized drugs—$42,000.00. 

LAMBTON CSO (Community Safety/Media Relations Officers)

The Lambton County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Com-

munity Safety/Media Relations Officer (CSO) continues to

produce and distribute media releases in order to promote

crime prevention, traffic safety and to report on significant

incidents throughout Lambton County.

The CSO continues to attend elementary schools and various community events. The

CSO is active in the elementary schools delivering the OPP K.I.D.S. Program in relation

to social media and anti-bullying awareness.

The CSO continues to be successful in utilizing the media in capturing wanted persons

throughout the County.

The CSO was involved with local businesses and organizations collecting food and

toys for those-in-need during the Holiday Season.

The CSO utilized media resources to bring awareness to the Lambton OPP vulnerable

persons registry and new legislation involving lawful/unlawful use of Cannabis.

The CSO attended several hotels within Lambton in order to bring awareness to hu-

man trafficking.

LAMBTON CSO (Community Services/Media Relations Officers)

Total Number Community and School Presentations = 66

School Presentations Community Presentations

VIP/OPP KIDS 8 Seniors Events / Presentations 6

Bullying /Internet Safety 5 Youth Talks/Presentation/Bullying 5

Online Safety 4 Road Safety 10

Committees and other Involvement Online Safety 4

Sarnia-Lambton Safe Roads Committee Bicycle Safety / Rodeo (Non—School) 3

Media Releases General Presentations 6

2018 Total 185 Career Days 4

Farm Safety 2

Water Safety 1

Detachment Tours 1

TV / Radio Public Service / Talk Show In-terview 3

Other Community Events 4

LAMBTON SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER 2018 Points of Interest

Youth directly involved in calls: 670

Total Youth Charged with an offence: 24

Total youth diverted under the YCJA: 76

Lambton OPP currently has two full time School Resource Officers. (SRO) Their main focus

is to work closely with staff and students in both the County high schools, LCCVI in Petrolia

and NLSS in Forest. Having officers embedded inside the schools on a day to day basis

helps the students become familiar with, as well as developing a rapport with these offic-

ers, often on a first name basis. A quick response to all types of incidents in the schools

helps to keep small issues from turning into bigger and more serious problems. SRO offic-

ers are often called upon to problem solve and counsel students who may have gotten

off track with their classes or had poor attendance. SRO officers are frequently requested

to assist the Principals and Vice Principals when dealing with the parents of students to

keep them involved in their children’s school lives.

SRO officers also assist the 25 elementary schools in the county when called upon, often

talking to classes about social media issues and bullying. As well, SRO officers assist with

the schools emergency procedures, including: lock down, fire and tornado drills.

SRO officers assist front line officers with their investigations either by taking it over if it in-

volves students or assisting with paperwork, contacting/meeting parents or serving docu-

ments relating to Rebound or YJCA issues.

SRO officers work closely with the Lambton County Community Street Crimes Unit as well

as the Lambton County Crime Unit when serious criminal offences or drug issues are in-

volved. SRO officers often have information that assists in investigations due to their famil-

iarization with many of the students.

LAMBTON SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER SRO officers maintain a close working relationship with our

community partners including, Sarnia/Lambton Rebound

and St. Clair Child and Youth. This facilitates referrals and

YJCA diversions. SRO officers monitor attendance at Re-

bound to ensure compliance and that assigned classes are

completed. SRO officers also work alongside Probation and

Parole officers in keeping up to date on youths in the school system, ensuring they are in

compliance with their court imposed conditions.

SRO officers are trained in Violence Threat Risk Assessment and are called upon to assist

with assessment hearings conducted at the various schools in Lambton County. SRO of-

ficers attend committee meetings with Lambton Youth Mental Health Court Program as

well as the Youth Problem Gambling Committee.

SRO officers have interacted with youths suffering from mental health issues in increasing-

ly high numbers over the last year. In addition to monitoring and addressing these issues,

officers have partnered with local agencies in an effort to reduce the impact of these

issues that include depression, anxiety and suicide.

LAMBTON CRIME ABATEMENT The Crime Abatement program in Lambton County is main-

tained by one officer and a detective sergeant. All platoons

and Community Street Crimes officers are engaged in con-

ducting checks of those candidates in the program. Officers

are provided with up to date conditions of release. They

check with candidates to ensure that conditions are being

met. In the event that offender is breaching conditions of release, a criminal investigation

is completed, and, where applicable, charges are laid. Often times these investigations

involve the investigating officer, crime abatement coordinator, court services staff and

probation/parole officers.

A close working relationship is maintained with probation and parole staff, both youth

and adult. This close relationship assists probations officers with monitoring their clients

and officers are able to ensure these parties are abiding by the court ordered conditions

that they agreed to follow.

On occasion, these checks led police to investigate further and additional charges were

laid in court.

On average for the year of 2018, there were approximately 10 persons in the program

each month with an average of 3 checks conducted each month. Approximately 1 per-

son from the list was charged on average per month for the year in regards to breaching

their court imposed terms. There was an average of 1 breach of condition charge per

month and an average of 3 unrelated criminal charges laid each month.

Each month, at least 1 person on the list was either incarcerated, wanted by police or in

a residential treatment program. At least 2 persons on the list had several charges in oth-

er jurisdictions at the same time.

LAMBTON STAFFING UPDATES TRANSFERRED OUT OF LAMBTON:

5 Provincial Constables

TRANSFERRED INTO LAMBTON:

2 Provincial Constables

2 Probationary Constables

RETIREMENTS:

2 Provincial Constables

LAMBTON FALSE ALARMS

Municipality Commercial Residential

Lambton Shores 58 57

ST Clair Township 51 52

Dawn-Euphemia 3 8

Plympton-Wyoming 40 34

Brooke-Alvinston 3 4

Warwick 25 5

Enniskillen 11 7

Petrolia 57 7

Oil Springs 4 0

TOTAL 252 174

OPERATION HEAT

Positive Ticketing Program

Through a partnership with Circle K / Mac’s Convenience

Stores, OPP officers hand out coupons (i.e. ‘tickets’) when they see youth doing random

acts of kindness and exhibiting positive behaviour. The coupons bearing the OPP logo

are redeemable for a free cold (‘Froster’) beverage during Operation FREEZE in the sum-

mer and a warm beverage (hot chocolate) during Operation HEAT in the winter months

at Circle K / Mac’s.

The "Positive Tickets" are an avenue or tool that can be utilized by our members to initiate

relationships between youth, their communities and local businesses.

A youth may receive a "Positive Ticket" from an officer for any number of positive behav-

iours:

to recognize youth for practicing personal safety such as wearing bicycle helmets; 

doing various good deeds; 

participating in community activities; 

demonstrating community pride e.g. picking up trash; 

deterring crime or observing school crossing rules; or

as an "icebreaker" to establish a rapport with kids in their patrol area.

LEGALIZATION OF CANNABIS

Driving—Criminal code

Bill C-46, an Act to amend the Criminal Code, enhances the ability of the police to detect drug and alcohol impairment in drivers and enforce applicable laws. The Bill introduced three (3) new criminal offences related to drug-impaired driving or when a motor-ist is suspected of being impaired by a combination of drugs and alcohol.

Summary conviction offence drug-impaired driving: 2 nanograms (ng) but less than 5ng of THC

per ml of blood

Hybrid offence drug-impaired driving: 5ng or more of THC per ml of blood.

Hybrid offence drug-impaired driving: 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood + 2.5ng of more of

THC per 1ml of blood.

The offences focus on the concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), measured in nano-

grams per milliliter of blood. THC is the main impairing component in cannabis. It’s important to

note that the new offences also apply to those with a medical authorization for cannabis. The Bill

also allows police to conduct tests using approved drug screening equipment or a blood test to

determine if a driver had drugs in his/her system at the time they were driving

On December 18, 2018, Part 2 of Bill C-46 came into force:

Mandatory roadside screening for alcohol authorizes the police to perform mandatory alco-

hol screening on drivers without needing reasonable grounds to suspect that driver may be

impaired. Police officers who have an approved screening device on hand will be able to

test a breath sample of any driver they lawfully stop, even without reasonable suspicion that

the driver has alcohol in their body. This would be done after the person has been lawfully

stopped pursuant to existing authority. A driver who refused to provide a breath sample

could be subject to a criminal offence.

Higher financial penalties for all impaired drivers will also come into force.

Source: Department of Justice Impaired Driving Laws: http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/cj-jp/sidl-

rlcfa/

LEGALIZATION OF CANNABIS

Driving—Highway Traffic Act

Amendments to the Highway Traffic Act, which came into

effect on July 1, 2018, establish tougher impaired driving laws including zero-tolerance

sanctions for young, novice and commercial motor vehicle drivers where the presence

of drugs are detected by the approved drug screening equipment.

Zero tolerance sanctions do not apply if the individual (young/novice/commercial driv-

er) is authorized to use cannabis for a medical purpose.

Source: https://www.ontario.ca/page/cannabis-legalization

PHONE / DOOR THREAT

FRAUD

HUMAN TRAFFICING

As part of the Provincial Strategy to End Human Trafficking, the Government of On-tario passed the Anti-Human Trafficking Act in May 2017. This act increased protec-tion for survivors of human trafficking, making it easier for survivors to pursue compen-sation. The Act proclaimed February 22 of each year as Human Trafficking Aware-ness Day in Ontario.

SAFEGUARD ONTARIO

DRUG-IMPAIRED DRIVING

CITIZEN SELF REPORTING TOOL

LAMBTON CONTACT INFORMATION OPP CALLS FOR SERVICE: When you need to report an incident or wish to speak with an of-ficer, these numbers will connect you to the nearest OPP Commu-nications Centre throughout Ontario. 1-888-310-1122 1-888-310-1133 (TTY) 9-1-1 EMERGENCY If you call 9-1-1 for an emergency: Give your exact location. Include address and town or city as this will enable call taker to ei-

ther handle the information or transfer you to the proper 9-1-1 centre. Give your telephone number including the area code. Advise the nature of your call. Listen to the call takers instructions - depending on the location and type of incident, you may

be transferred. Stay on the line until advised to hang up. DETACHMENT HOURS / CONTACT INFO:

CALLING THE DETACHMENT: When calling the detachment at the above numbers you will receive an automated greet-

ing.

Press 1 if you need to report an incident or speak with an officer.

Press 2 if you wish to speak with the administrative personnel during the above noted business hours.

After hours you may leave a non-urgent message that will be followed-up on the next business day.

OUTSIDE PHONE * If you attend an office and the doors are locked or it is after hours – please pick up the phone outside of the detachment and you will be connected directly to the OPP Commu-nications Centre.

Lambton OPP Petrolia Detachment

Main Admin Centre

4224 Oil Heritage Rd. P.O. Box 400 Petrolia, ON N0N 1R0

519-882-1011 519-882-1014 fax

Mon – Fri 8-4 pm

St. Clair Township (Satellite) 392 Lyndoch Street, Corunna, ON N0N 1G0

519-862-4680 519-862-1544 fax

Mon – Thurs & every other Friday 8-4 pm

Grand Bend (Summer only) 58 Main Street Grand Bend, ON N0M 1T0

519-238-2345 Summer

Point Edward (Municipal) 102 St. Clair Street Point Edward, ON N7V 1N7

519-336-8691 519-336-5011 fax

Mon – Thurs & every other Friday 8-4 pm

LAMBTON CONTACT INFORMATION cont’d CRIMINAL RECORD CHECKS: For a complete list of requirements and information on how to apply for Criminal Record Checks, Police Information Checks and Police Vulnerable Sector Checks click the link below;

Ontario Provincial Police | Criminal Record Checks

 

CANADIAN ANTI-FRAUD CENTRE: The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) is the central agency in Canada that collects infor-mation and criminal intelligence on such matters as mass marketing fraud (i.e.: telemarketing), advance fee fraud (i.e.: West African letters), Internet fraud and identification theft complaints.

If you wish to report a fraud or require information on a possible fraud contact the Canadian anti- fraud centre;

Phone: 1-888-495-8501 OR E-mail: info@antifraudcentre.ca

CRIME STOPPERS: You may contact Crime Stoppers from anywhere in Ontario at 1-800-222-8477, or by leaving an anonymous Web-Tip at TipSoft - Web Tips Submission

CITIZENS SELF REPORTING: You have the option to report select occurrences to the OPP from your computer or mobile de-vice using the OPP’s Citizen Self Reporting system.

Use this system to report:

1. Lost/missing property under $5,000

2. Stolen license plates or validation stickers

3. Theft from a vehicle under $5,000

4. Mischief/damage to a vehicle under $5,000

5. Mischief/damage to property (other than a vehicle) under $5,000

6. Theft under $5,000

7. Driving Complaint

FRONTLINE SUPPORT UNIT (FSU):

The Frontline Support Unit (FSU) program

is a differential response strategy that focuses on call management. This includes responsibility for the OPP’s Citizen Self-Reporting (CSR) system which is an online police reporting system for mem-bers of the public to report specific occurrences directly to the OPP via the Internet. The FSU model will offer a call handling alternative for select calls for service allowing the deployment of resources to critical incidents or member engagement in proactive police activities. Through the use of technology, the OPP continues to improve our processes and service delivery in support of

4224 Oil Heritage Road Petrolia, ON N0N 1R0

519.882.1011 ph. 519.882.1014 fax

LAMBTON COUNTY OPP