Body cameras are now in use in the Vernon North Okanagan area.
Insp. Neil Kennedy of the Vernon North Okanagan RCMP was at council on Monday, May 12 to introduce and educate the public on new body-worn cameras that officers will now be using when on service.
"The minute officers step out of their car, it is seatbelt off and camera on," said Kennedy, as all frontline, uniform-wearing members of the force will be using the cameras. "When the officer hits record, it actually records the prior 30 seconds without audio, which gives a little bit of a preview of what the officer is dealing with."
Complaints from the public have already been reduced in other local communities since the cameras have been worn, according to Kennedy.
"We are having a lot of guilty pleas, because it is best evidence," said Kennedy. "You can't say you didn't do it when it is on video. It serves as true, bonafide record of what the officer sees."
RCMP Quarterly Report
A report from Vernon North Okanagan RCMP Supt. Blake McLeod on the first quarter policing statistics from 2025 was also presented to council May 12.
Among the many stats provided included criminal code offences seeing a 12.06 per cent uptick from the first quarter of 2024 (1,666 vs. 1,867). Total calls for service are right around what they were a year ago, with 20 fewer calls (6,246 in 2024, 6,226 in 2025).
Violent offences are up 7.8 per cent, with the notable increase being in Enderby and Coldstream. In first quarter of 2024, Enderby had 25 violent offences. In 2025, there were 52. Iin Coldstream in 2024, there were 13 compared to 28 now.
Coun. Brian Guy asked if there is a trend on why the majority of the crime stats are up from a year ago.
"Our crime analyst looked at the numbers and the reality is we found a lot of travelling criminals who commit a lot of crime and then move on, more so in the last six to eight months," said McLeod. "Can't point to any one criminal, but there are crime drivers who would drive up the crime in some areas. It is certainly a challenge."
McLeod was also asked about the location on a majority of the crimes. In total, 46 per cent of criminal offences were committed in the north end of town (13 per cent) and downtown core (33 per cent).
"We are often asked what the city can do to help and we could always use more police officers," said McLeod. "If we get 100 cops we can eradicate crime, but we are expensive. My commitment is to do the best that we can with what we have."
Staffing is currently filled at the precinct, but that includes officers on leave (maternity, paternity), which is to be expected, according to McLeod.
