SaskatoonSaskatoon police Chief Cameron McBride says one of the main drivers behind an increase in calls for service is ‘social disorder,’ including the prevalence of drugs and increasing mental health challenges.Police service seeing higher volume of people in crisisCBC News · Posted: Sep 11, 2025 5:32 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours agoSaskatoon police Chief Cameron McBride says the police service is seeing a growing number of ‘social disorder’ calls. (Dan Zakreski/CBC)Saskatoon’s chief of police says one of the main drivers behind an increase in calls to city police has been “social disorder.”In a meeting of the city’s governance and priorities committee on Wednesday, Chief Cameron McBride described those calls for service as instances that may or may not be criminal in nature, but cause residents concern or fear. He said such calls make up about 43 per cent of total calls.McBride said that in 2024, the police service received just under 160,000 total calls for service. This year, he said they are on a trajectory to reach 175,000 calls.”What I see in Saskatoon is an increasing volume of people in crisis, people living on the streets,” he said.He said, generally, the most significant stresses on police stem from circumstances of social disorder, including the prevalence of drugs and increasing mental health challenges.”They are so complex and it really takes a team to have a significant effect on one person’s quality of life or on their stability,” he said.Issues with some prosecution decisionsMcBride said police deal with repeat offenders every day. In most cases, he said if tickets are written to a person who has no capacity to pay and no ability to work it off, the tickets are withdrawn.”And so all of the intervention work that police tried to accomplish through holding them accountable utilizing legislation is for naught,” he said. “And so that’s a real challenge.”McBride said there are issues around the utilization of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, which is prosecuted by federal prosecutions. He said there’s a policy where they will not proceed with prosecutions when it comes to minor possession or public drug use, which he said comes from a strong desire from the federal government to not criminalize people who are experiencing addictions.However, McBride told the committee he believes there is a significant opportunity to use the legislation, and charges for possession of drugs in public, as catalysts toward programming or a different level of care.”Where there’s a carte blanche policy refusal to proceed with those charges, except in very specific circumstances, it’s a significant challenge for us in policing,” he said.Wildfire evacuees stayingMcBride said that following the evacuations of people from many northern communities due to wildfires this summer, officers have interacted with some northerners who are say they are staying in the city because they don’t feel there’s anything to go back to.However, McBride said there’s very little hope they will get the supports they need in Saskatoon because they don’t know how to get them.Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block says a ‘multi-governmental’ approach is needed to help evacuees from northern Saskatchewan wildfires who have elected to stay in the city instead of returning home. (Trevor Bothorel/CBC News)Speaking to reporters following Wednesday’s meeting, Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block said she wasn’t surprised to hear evacuees from northern wildfires have decided to stay in Saskatoon instead of returning to their communities, adding that’s always been the case.”Because let’s face it, Saskatoon is a pretty great city,” she said, “even though we definitely have some challenges.”Block said Saskatoon does have services, and access to services, that may not be available in remote areas.”But I think that all people are welcome in our city and we simply need to find ways to accommodate that.”It’s a multi-governmental approach. And I think that it needs to begin with Indigenous leadership to help us answer those questions.”
‘Social disorder’ behind increase in calls to Saskatoon police, chief says
