Police chief Alan Murphy speaks to members of the Medicine Hat Police Commission in council chambers at city hall Wednesday during a public meeting.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
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The Medicine Hat Police Services Downtown Patrol Until says it has observed an increase in the number of vulnerable individuals in the downtown area this year, according to a report released to the Medicine Hat Police Commission on Wednesday.
Since the end of February, officers downtown have responded to more than 320 calls for service that include unwanted guests, mental health and well-being checks and suspicious activity.
“This has led to a rise in nuisance-related complaints, including loitering, trespassing and unwanted guests,” reads the police chief’s report for March 2025.
Police are working proactively in addressing concerns by escorting violators from private properties and other problem areas while encouraging individuals to seek help from local social services.
New forensic vehicle
The Medicine Hat Police Forensic Identification Unit has received a new Ford Transit van that has been outfitted to meet the unit’s needs into the future.
The van provides investigators significant space for storage and file work, and has already been utilized at numerous calls and has “exceeded expectations.”
“This van will be utilized for all crime scenes, whatever it may be, whether it’s a drug related crime scene, anything that needs forensics,” explains St. Sgt. Jason Graham. “It’s outfitted with basically everything they need inside the van to conduct their work on-site, as opposed to having to bring everything back to the police station.”
Graham told members of the commission that officers could utilize the van at a crime scene for several days if necessary.
Police chief Alan Murphy told members of the commission the van was on backorder for years due to a vehicle shortage on the market.
“This new van that we have the members are able to stand up in the back because of the height, they have a computer back there they can work on, they have equipment drawers and it’s very well organized,” said Murphy. “Through no one’s fault, Amazon bought up all the vans in North America which is why they were all backordered.”
Murphy said it was important the police service purchased a four-wheel model to deal with weather and hills.
“It’s incredible to have that piece of equipment here, just to make it that much easier and that much more professional,” said Murphy.
Up to the end of February the Forensic Identification Unit has attended more than 50 scenes in the city and filed more than 450 forensic based reports.
We who live, work, pay taxes and abide by laws in Medicine Hat have also noticed a dramatic uptick in problematic individuals in downtown areas. I live in the flats and it would be nice to be able to use the underpass tunnel to get to downtown, but it is almost always filled with what I would not regard as vulnerable as much as troubled and trouble making people who should not be congregating in threatening groups in public spaces, impeding free passage for everyone else. Just the other day I had to keep crossing third Street to avoid these groups of shouting, unpredictable people gathered on corners or in the middle of the sidewalk or blocking the entrance to businesses. I saw people doing dope, one of them stretched out on the sidewalk. We left British Columbia to get away from this kind of chaos sanctioned do-nothing politicians. Where are they coming from? Why are they here? Who is aiding and abetting this? Why do the voices of business owners and citizens of this town take second or third place?
We who live, work, pay taxes and abide by laws in Medicine Hat have also noticed a dramatic uptick in problematic individuals in downtown areas. I live in the flats and it would be nice to be able to use the underpass tunnel to get to downtown, but it is almost always filled with what I would not regard as vulnerable as much as troubled and trouble making people who should not be congregating in threatening groups in public spaces, impeding free passage for everyone else. Just the other day I had to keep crossing third Street to avoid these groups of shouting, unpredictable people gathered on corners or in the middle of the sidewalk or blocking the entrance to businesses. I saw people doing dope, one of them stretched out on the sidewalk. We left British Columbia to get away from this kind of chaos sanctioned do-nothing politicians. Where are they coming from? Why are they here? Who is aiding and abetting this? Why do the voices of business owners and citizens of this town take second or third place?