Who does what in my local police station?

The members of both the police and civilian staff have specialized functions and may, for example, work on aspects related to patrol, prevention, community relations, investigations, road safety and resolving specific criminal or social issues.

The local Police Chief

Police station staff may vary depending on the territory served, and range from fifty to over a hundred individuals under the command of the local Police Chief. The Chief has the grade of commander or even inspector in central stations.

The lieutenant

The local Chief is supported by the lieutenant, who mainly carries out administrative duties.  

The supervisor

The local station supervisor is the first level of management and this position is held by a police officer with the grade of sergeant. Each local police station has between 5 and 10 local supervisors and they manage between 5 to 12 local officers. The SPVM has some 250 local supervisors.

The local police officer

The some 2000 local police officers are the foundation of the SPVM. The local constable is the front-line player in maintaining public peace. The local constable resolves issues by focusing on their underlying causes. The goal is to resolve problems in a sustained manner, working with the population, institutions and community organizations in the area. This officer acts directly on maintaining the feeling of safety of the public.

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The community relations officer   

The community relations officer is the contact person at the local station for community relations. This individual is concerned with the most vulnerable groups in society, in terms of risk of being victimized and of feeling safe.

This officer develops partnership relationships with community organizations and institutions in the neighbourhood. The officer carries out prevention programs in the neighbourhood, meets with young people, the elderly and business representatives to provide advice on safety and prevention.

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Road safety officer

This individual has a solid understanding of local traffic and road safety issues. The officer works at resolving problems along with technical agents from the borough. The officer identifies areas at risk and issues affecting traffic or road safety in the local area.

He or she respects the laws and regulations regarding road safety – speeding detection operations, ticketing, collision scene analyses, etc. This officer is also responsible for coordinating school crossing guard activities.

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Domestic and intra-family violence (VCI) officer 

There are domestic and intra-family violence (VCI) officers in each neighbourhood police station (PDQ) and investigation centre.

The responsibilities of VCI resource officers are:

• Assume the role of resource person in VCI matters among the police officers in their unit.
• Meet with each new police officer from their PDQ and tell them about the role of the VCI officer, VCI organizations in the sector, specifics, etc.
• Inform the police officers of their unit of the various protocols concluded between the SPVM and its partners.
• Disseminate the information gathered to the police officers in their unit.
• Participate in round tables with partners.

Consultation adviser – civilian

The consultation adviser is a civilian employee who supports and advises police officers in their duties. This individual's goal includes, among others, increased discussion and communication between the SPVM and the population in certain areas. The adviser works within Montréal's local police stations where certain areas have a higher poverty and social exclusion index.

Project-based action module 

The project-based action module is an addition to the local police station. Its members are part of an operational team that functions on a project basis. The projects allow for strategies to be developed and intervention plans to be put in place to obtain a lasting result that is based on an identified problem.

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