Justice committee  Again, we've looked at this. We believe it informs the decision-making. The idea is that if you have an opportunity to contact the police, we should be involved. I really believe that's all that provision does. It helps inform, so that people take reasonable steps. That's all we're asking.

Justice committee  I would like to think that we don't charge people just because it's the easier thing to do.

Justice committee  I agree with you, and that's one of the comments I made at the beginning. We do look to this to be clearer than it currently is, and therefore we endorse it. It should make things easier for our members. There are situations that are tough. You can have a tough situation, one in which you could potentially have some serious injuries.

Justice committee  I think, with respect, the human frailties you point to exist with the shop owners themselves potentially. So if you bring loss prevention officers in, they possess those same potential frailties. So I don't see this as expanding.... In fact it already exists. The LPOs, the loss prevention officers I spoke of, are the ones who are actually carrying out a large portion of the arrests in the larger chains.

Justice committee  The facts always dictate the answer to any question, so I don't believe I can give you one definitive answer and say it can never be done, nor can I say it can always be done. It really is dependent on the facts. One thing is quite clear: from a police perspective we certainly don't encourage the use of firearms.

Justice committee  I would say that it is as specific as you're going to get. Our situation is that the inevitable does happen. People do flee. The individual trying to make the arrest does lose sight, and arguably under the current version you've now lost that arrest power. It's trying to address what is going on in reality, the fact that people need to have the ability to arrest somebody who has committed a crime--in a timely fashion.

Justice committee  Thank you. I apologize, I don't speak French, so I'll have to respond in English. The CACP does support the amendments. We recognize that we cannot be in all places at all times. As I said, we certainly would prefer if the police were able to make the arrest. We are trained. We are equipped.

Justice committee  Good morning. By way of introduction, really quick, I'm Acting Superintendent Greg Preston of the Edmonton Police Service, but I'm here representing the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the CACP, and its law amendments committee. I'd like to say at the outset that CACP does support the passage of Bill C-26.