A week after a violent stabbing attack at the Longueuil courthouse, Quebec announces that it wants to train 144 additional special constables.
Most of the time, they are special constables who provide security in courtrooms and who walk the corridors of courthouses.
Currently, there are not enough to ensure the proper functioning of all the rooms, which sometimes have to be closed, particularly in Montreal, due to the lack of a constable to ensure the safety of the judge and other people present. The Ministry of Public Security estimates that 110 are missing across Quebec.
After a 68-year-old court interpreter was attacked and seriously injured on January 9, many voices were raised to demand more security in courthouses, in particular by the addition of arches serving as metal detectors at the entrance. The Longueuil courthouse, unlike that of Montreal, does not have one.
Since the attack on January 9, measures have been added to the courthouses of Longueuil, Laval and Saint-Jérôme: metal detector sticks are used and searches are carried out at the entrance.
A 44-year-old man has been arrested for the attack on the court interpreter and has been charged with attempted murder.
In a press release released Thursday, the Minister of Public Security, François Bonnardel, claims to have reached an agreement with the National Police Academy of Quebec (ENPQ) to open four training cohorts starting in March, “to deal with the operational challenges caused by the shortage of special constables. »
This has the effect of quadrupling the number of existing cohorts, he says. It remains to be seen whether enough candidates will register to meet the minister’s objectives. A recruitment campaign is planned, indicates the Ministry of Public Security.
“We are taking a step forward in order to tackle the shortage of special constables, and I thank the ENPQ for its collaboration, as well as all our teams of constables in the field who ensure the safety of the population on a daily basis,” underlines Mr. Bonnardel by press release.
The training for special constables lasts 10 weeks: 1 week online, 8 weeks at the ENPQ and 1 week of integration in a courthouse. The first cohort is scheduled for March 2024 and the last, for January 2025.
Last week, the office of the Minister of Justice of Quebec, Simon Jolin-Barrette, indicated that analysis work is “already underway to plan the addition of security arches in certain courthouses, notably that of Longueuil. »