Patrick Nogier sat down with paNOW and reflected on 2024 and what's coming in 2025. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Policing

Year in Review: Prince Albert Police Chief reflects on 2024

Dec 30, 2024 | 2:00 PM

As 2024 comes to a close, Prince Albert’s Chief of Police is reflecting on his team’s successes and challenges.

This past year also marked Patrick Nogier’s first full year in the position, and he noted one of his priorities was completing a two-year strategic plan. He explained the strategic plan is a really important document for frontline personnel, but it’s not their day-to-day document.

“For us to make any progress moving forward, you have to have a document that you can refer to, something that provides a vision of where the organization wants to go,” he told paNOW.

Among the four main areas covered by the plan are public safety, celebrating culture, investment in leadership and building community connections.
While noting the importance of public safety, Nogier also stressed the importance of leadership and identifying the future of the Prince Albert Police Service.

“That’s investing in an internal process that identifies who your next leaders are going to be, so whether you’re promoting to sergeant or staff sergeant or inspector. We want to make sure that we had a policy that people could trust internally, that they could follow, and then know that they achieved something, and then for us on the administrative side of things, a process that ensures that the people that we do promote are the ones that we can lean on, you know, to get things through those dark nights and those tough times.”

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In September, Nogier welcomed an announcement by Premier Scott Moe (far right) that the province would pay to add 17 officers to the force. (Susan McNeil/paNOW Staff)

The Marshall’s Service is set to become operational in 2025 and there’s an increased need for more RCMP and municipal police officers across Saskatchewan. The Prince Albert Police Service is competing for hires and Nogier said in a very competitive market there is increased pressure to remain attractive.

That goes beyond shiny cars and fancy suits but, according to Nogier, represents a need to create a culture where people want to come and work in the city. And while noting the attractive features that families and young officers may enjoy such as the nearby rivers, lakes and abundance of outdoor activities, Nogier also acknowledged working in Prince Albert as a police officer takes a certain individual.

“You know, because we do have a high call load, we’ve got a lot of trauma in the community, unfortunately. We are officers are carrying, you know, a high percentage of good files that they’re working on. So it’s a busy organization to come to.”

Encouraging trends and challenges

When looking at trends to the end of November and comparing them to the same time period last year, the Prince Albert Police Service, through a number of initiatives, is celebrating some successes.

There’s been a 12 per cent reduction in property crime and total violent crime is down over 11 per cent, which includes both homicides and attempted murders. However, one statistic Nogier is very concerned about is sexual violations, which is up 8.62 per cent.

“Perhaps if these trends continue, we’re going to have to invest in our capacity to investigate sexual assaults, we’re going to have to make sure that our frontline personnel weary their trauma informed that they can respond to those situations, and then we’re going have to do some community outreach,” Nogier said, stressing the need to try and identify what’s the cause of these types of occurrences that are contributing to these numbers.”

The murder of Trevor LaPlante in July shocked the community. (Nigel Maxwell/paNOW Staff)

Nogier acknowledged a great deal of this work will involve working with the Sexual Assault Centre and Prince Albert Grand Council. He also confirmed a financial request in the city’s 2025 budget for an increase in two statistical analytical positions, to dive deep into these numbers.

“It’s not good enough to just say the number shows a reduction or an increase. We have to tell why, we have to be able to tell a story why, and then based on that, we need to go and we need to forge new partnerships with external partners to try and address those issues.”

Traffic services

Another notable success this year for Prince Albert Police relates to traffic services. At the beginning of the year, they had gone to the provincial government and asked for a moratorium on an agreement for combined traffic services. 


Under the terms of the agreement, three local officers are paid for through SGI funding and three officers through provincial government funding. Those officers can be used for traffic initiatives in various centres across Saskatchewan.

“One thing we recognized in 2024 is that we wanted to take back our streets,” Nogier said, stating there’s a known direct link between vehicles and criminal activity.

In 2023, the city’s police service experienced a substantial amount of failed-to-stop for police situations, where numbers were through the roof and contributed to a high crime severity index rating.

“But in 2024, when we brought our troops back in, we were doing more roadside stops. You know, we had higher visibility. We were doing traffic stings, and we were impounding vehicles and taking them off the street.
So I am extremely, extremely happy to announce that in 2024, we saw a 54 per cent reduction year to date and fail to stop for police.”

Protest policies

Going forward, Nogier stressed a need to revisit and prepare the team for responses to protests.

One such incident occurred last July when a small group of pro-Palestinian protestors waved flags and signs and chanted through megaphones as Team Israel played Team Canada at the WBSC Mens Softball World Cup Group B Qualifiers.

Softball players from New Zealand and Argentina will be travelling to Prince Albert later this summer.

Teams from the two countries will take on Canada in the group stage of the XVIII Men’s Softball World Cup happening in Saskatchewan’s third largest city.

Protestors gathered outside the Art Hauser centre. (Susan McNeil/ paNOW Staff)

Nogier explained the protest showed the city is not immune to events happening around the world. In an increasingly interconnected world, international conflicts and social issues can ignite public demonstrations and gatherings, even in smaller communities.

“Our Service must be equipped to navigate these situations effectively, balancing the right to peaceful assembly enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms with the responsibility to maintain public safety and uphold the law. Adopting modern, evidence-based approaches to managing public demonstrations will ensure officers are prepared to respond professionally, safeguarding the safety of all involved while minimizing disruptions to the community.”

Understanding the dynamics of public order events requires a commitment to both training and public awareness. Public protests are a cornerstone of a democratic society, but there is a clear distinction between lawful expression and unlawful activity.

“Civil disobedience cannot serve as a justification for violating the law. Modern practices—including clear communication strategies, de-escalation techniques, and the measured use of police resources—are essential for managing these situations effectively. At the same time, fostering community awareness of the complexities of public demonstrations is critical. By building trust and transparency we can strengthen our capacity to uphold public safety and ensure peaceful, lawful assemblies in an increasingly globalized environment.”

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell