Meth drives up arrest warrants in 2018, even as Regina police attempt to chip away at numbers

Methamphetamine-related crime drove up the number of arrest warrants issued in 2018, the Board of Police Commissioners heard on Wednesday.

The Regina Police Servicehas been trying to come up with innovative ways to deal with the "basketful of warrants" it deals with on a regular basis, according toChief Evan Bray.

• Regina police concocting 'innovative ways' to reduce outstanding warrants

Policeare employing a targeted strategy to deal warrants by prioritizingthe most serious and prolific offenders who are wanted for arrest.

Warrants that are older than five years and which don't involve a personal injury are sent to the Crown to be evaluatedand then withdrawn, if appropriate.

Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2018, the total number of people wanted on outstanding warrants decreased by 104 people, or 3.3 per cent from 3,163 people wanted on warrants at the start of the year down to 3,059 people by year's end.

But that increase came with a caveat, as the report to the board noted the number of outstanding Criminal Code warrants had increased from 2,688 warrants in December 2016 to 3,034 warrants in December 2018, an increase of 13 per cent.

A 2018 crime statistics comparison showed there's been a 10.9 per cent increase in person and property crime, and a 4.3 per cent increase in calls for service compared to 2017.

"These increases can be largely attributed to the prevalence of methamphetamine in our community, and consequently the number of offenders wanted on Criminal Code warrants," reads the report.

Bray notes that court cases can take years and involve multiple adjournments.Aperson may miss one court appearance, leading to an arrest warrant.

"So I think we have to try and dig into that a little bit better," he said, noting that police are working with prosecutors to try and deal with the backlog in warrants.

"We meet with them regularly to see if we can't get a handle on this."