Pubdate: Thu, 17 May 2012 Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC) Copyright: 2012 Times Colonist Contact: http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html Website: http://www.timescolonist.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481 Author: Douglas Quan MPS MULL CROSS-BORDER WATERWAY POLICING 'Shiprider' Program Has Been Tested in Juan DE Fuca Strait, Elsewhere Shared waterways along the Canada-u.s. border in the Juan de Fuca Strait and elsewhere soon could be patrolled by vessels staffed with armed Canadian and American officers who have the authority to freely cross into each other's territories in pursuit of suspected criminals or terrorists. Legislative changes awaiting approval by Parliament would allow specially trained and designated officers to participate in "integrated cross-border operations." Advocates say the initiative will give authorities a big boost in their efforts to go after drug and weapon smugglers and human traffickers, who know they can elude capture by making a "run for the border." Some observers, however, are concerned about issues related to sovereignty and due process, especially when authorities are looking eventually to create a land-based version of the program. "I'm not a pure nationalist who says we have to maintain our borders. But when working with different legal regimes, you have to be careful," said Emily Gilbert, director of the Canadian Studies Program at the University of Toronto. The RCMP, U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies have conducted several pilot tests of the program, dubbed Shiprider, since 2005 along the Juan de Fuca Strait, the Windsor, Ont.Detroit border, on the St. Lawrence Seaway near Cornwall, Ont., and on Lake Ontario. Police have credited Shiprider with multiple arrests and seizures of marijuana, cocaine and contraband cigarettes. "In the past we weren't able to pursue criminals across the border, and they knew it," Mike Cabana, the RCMP deputy commissioner in charge of federal policing, told a Senate committee examining the proposal this week. "All they had to do was reach that international line to escape apprehension and prosecution." It's not always so easy for police to call their counterparts on the other side of the border to pick up the chase because radio systems are not always in sync, said Chief Supt. Joe Oliver, director-general of the RCMP'S border integrity program, in an interview. The Integrated CrossBorder Law Enforcement Operations Act now before Parliament entrenches a framework agreed upon by the Canadian and U.S. governments back in 2009. According to the act, all operations that take place within Canadian borders will be performed under the direction of Canadian officers. U.S. officers will have to follow Canadian rules and procedures. Canadian officers similarly will have to respect American rules and procedures on the U.S. side of the border. Participating officers are required to complete an eight-day training course at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Charleston, South Carolina, during which they are taught rules and procedures and use-of-force guidelines of each country. So far, 140 Canadians and American officers have completed the training course. If the legislation passes, two Shiprider teams could be deployed on a regular basis as soon as this summer. Authorities say they also hope to test a land-based version of the Shiprider program this summer that could see cross-designated officers patrolling the border in shared road vehicles. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom