Plante denies accusations she doesn’t support Montreal police after two murders in one day
Posted August 25, 2022 1:11 pm.
Last Updated August 25, 2022 5:47 pm.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante defended herself against accusations she doesn’t support police officers, amid a spate of shootings in the city.
BACKGROUND: Two men now dead after being shot in broad daylight: at Rockland Shopping Centre and at pizzeria Napoli
Plante admitted she can be criticized on many subjects but says it is false to suggest she isn’t devoted to Montreal or to addressing gun violence.
“All the efforts are being done, really,” she said. “And we’ve had a great conversation with the SPVM previously during the spring, asking them to make sure that they can share everything they do because they do so much. They do so much and they’re everywhere as well as doing all the inquiries.
“All the prevention work is being done. All the criminals that got arrested, if we just think about the random shooting that happened 48 hours, it only took 48 hours for the SPVM to find a suspect. So for me, those are like I said, I don’t want to minimize some people that are concerned. Absolutely not. But the work is being done by the SPVM and the work is being done also by different organizations, making sure that our youths are being part of the solution.
“There’s 1,000 guns being taking out of the streets since more than a little bit more than a year.”
Her comments to reporters Thursday came after the union representing Montreal police officers said that the force doesn’t have enough members to properly police the city and that officers are quitting because they don’t feel supported.
The Fraternite des policiers et policieres de Montreal sent a letter to Plante this week claiming that since the mayor promised last year to hire 250 additional officers, the number of police in the city has dropped by 72.
Plante and other Quebec politicians are under pressure to respond to gun violence in the Montreal area.
Two men were murdered within less than one hour on Tuesday, the latest killings in a series of high-profile and brazen shootings in the city this summer.
