A Friendly Police Supervision Model and Youth Violence Reduction in Northern Saskatchewan: Implications for Indigenous Policing in Canada

Abstract

Indigenous policing has become a prominent concept which refers to an institutional transformation in the Canadian policing perspective based on the recognition of rights, respect, cooperation, and reconciliation. Despite increasing prominence of the Indigenous policing concept, there is limited scholarly attention to this area. Research can contribute to the efforts to develop culturally responsive and effective policing methods within Indigenous communities. The Northeast Youth Violence Reduction Partnership (NYVRP), a five-year pilot project (2015–2020), was implemented in three predominantly Indigenous communities in Northeastern Saskatchewan which have high police-reported crime rates to reduce offending among youth at risk for violence or gang involvement ( n = 84). One of the main components of the NYVRP was the friendly supervision model of the police to maintain a positive relationship with youth rather than an adversarial relationship. To assess the achievements of the program, process and outcome evaluations were conducted. Findings provided evidence concerning the relevance of the friendly police supervision model with the overall goals of the program as well as the effectiveness of this model to reduce violence in the communities and indicated the ongoing need to develop better relationships between the police and Indigenous communities and youth. The evaluation findings on the process and impact of the program in terms of the policing components and the role of the police are shared and the implications of these findings for Indigenous policing approaches are discussed in light of best practices from other jurisdictions.