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Oct 30, 2024

Special constables may need more weapons to deal with violence in Metro, union says

The union representing special constables who patrol Montreal's Metro network says it may be time for its members to be armed with guns and stun guns. In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the

The union representing special constables who patrol Montreal's Metro network says it may be time for its members to be armed with guns and stun guns.

In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the Fraternité des constables et agents de la paix de la STM (FCAP) said its members have been dealing with an increase in violence recently which have put them "under constant pressure."

The union, which is affiliated to the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), says the dangers of encounters in the Metro network are exacerbated by constables' lack of equipment and information.

The union it says it hired a public security expert to weigh in on the issue.

According to the FCAP, the expert, retired Sûreté du Québec officer Mario Benriqué, submitted a preliminary report that includes recommendations to arm special constables with stun guns and guns. He also recommends they be given access to the Centre de renseignments policiers du Québec (CRPQ), a confidential police database.

The union stresses that it doesn't yet have an official position on the matter and that it needs to consult its 160 members or so to see what they think of the expert's recommendations. And it they are eventually implemented, the union says it won't happen quickly.

On Oct. 12, police investigated a fatal stabbing at the Guy-Concordia Metro station in downtown Montreal. The union representing special constables who patrol the Metro network says this is one of several recent incidents that show the growing danger their members face. (Stéphane Grégoire/Radio-Canada)

From inspectors to special constables

Prior to 2021, people who patrolled the STM network were known as inspectors.

The special constable status came with more powers, like arresting someone for an offence on the transit network and delivering them to police.

Last year, special constables began using cayenne pepper gel — a thicker, more targeted alternative to pepper spray. This was on top of the batons they were already equipped with.

At the time, Montreal's transit authority, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), said the pepper gel was a "de-escalation tool" for "exceptional circumstances," but it sparked concerns among advocates for people experiencing homelessness.

Kevin Grenier, the president of the FCAP, says special constables are projected to record 55,000 interventions this year, an average of 150 per day.

He points to recent incidents like a fatal stabbing at the Guy-Concordia station as proof that the Metro network is getting more dangerous for users and his members.

He says both the victim and the accused were known to police and access to the police database could have come in handy.

"Around that time, we also had three interventions in the Metro tunnel with people who were armed and experiencing mental health crises," Grenier said, specifying that some of the agents sustained injuries during those encounters.

"The last one, once we neutralized them, we realized that it was an air gun."

CBC News has reached out to the STM for comment and is waiting to hear back.

In 2021, the STM emphasized that "at no time will inspectors be equipped with firearms."