Petition calls for end to LPS ‘Wanted Wednesday’ social media posts

By Tim Kalinowski on April 29, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDtkalinowski@lethbridgeherald.com

Lethbridge based novelist Paul Butler says the Lethbridge Police Service’s use of “Wanted Wednesday” posts on social media amounts to little more than the public naming and shaming of vulnerable individuals being carried out under the excuse of law enforcement.
He says he was so “horrified” by the weekly feature, which he just came across recently, that he felt compelled to start a change.org petition to draw attention to the local police force’s use of the social media tool which essentially, in Butler’s view, acts as a means of “whipping up” of public antagonism toward often vulnerable and racialized individuals in the community. He points to the demeaning public comments he sees on the Wanted Wednesday’s social media posts as evidence of this naming and shaming component.
“Some of the people are clearly no danger to society,” Butler says. “They are extremely vulnerable, and I would actually be a little bit worried about the effect of having their pictures publicly circulated, so people can make horrible comments about them, would have on their lives which are already somewhat challenged. I really just think there is a lack of compassion, a lack of understanding, a lack of empathy.”
Butler acknowledges law enforcement does use wanted posters as a means of catching those charged with crimes, but, he says, there should be strict guidelines around their use.
“If someone is an imminent danger to society and members of the public then, of course, you need to know what they look like,” Butler states. “I wouldn’t suggest otherwise. But pretty much every single person I have seen on Wanted Wednesdays, as far as I can see, I can tell you they are not a danger to society; they are not an imminent danger to people.”
He also rejects any equivalencies that have been drawn from the public release of court records and what the LPS is doing with its Wanted Wednesdays. Court records have to be accessed in a very controlled way, he says, which does not have a social media component.
Butler hopes his petition will prompt the LPS to rethink its Wanted Wednesday program, and think about the best practices of community policing, which emphasizes working with vulnerable population groups to address the root causes of crime in a compassionate, de-stigmatizing and co-operative way.
“If you want to think of the absolute opposite of community policing– when you come up with Wanted Wednesdays,” he says. “It is the antithesis of community policing.”
The Lethbridge Police Service sent out a statement in response to Butler’s petition.
“The ‘Wanted Wednesday’ feature is one of many investigative tools the Lethbridge Police Service (LPS) utilizes to locate and apprehend individuals who have been charged with Criminal Code offences and are evading arrest on those matters,” it reads. “It is a long-standing and effective strategy employed by many law enforcement agencies that relies on the assistance and support of the community. The information on charged persons is part of the public domain and is accessible to all through the courts.”
The LPS goes on to state, in response to Butler’s claims about the naming and shaming aspect of Wanted Wednesday, that it cannot control what is said on social media.
“Social media is a polarizing entity, and while the feature does attract replies from those who do not agree with its use, there are also many comments from supporters,” the statement reads. “The Lethbridge Police Service social media channels are monitored and inappropriate comments are moderated as promptly as possible, although we do not have resources to do so on a 24-hour basis. While there are no immediate plans to discontinue publicly sharing information surrounding those individuals wanted on warrants of arrest, LPS will be reviewing its use of this tool, along with its short and long-term communications strategies, as part of its action plan to better serve the community.”
To view Butler’s change.org petition visit https://www.change.org/p/city-of-lethbridge-stop-lps-s-wanted-wednesdays-public-shaming

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