Police Services in Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
(RCMP and Halifax Regional Police)

Last updated September 22, 2006
© 2006, MARITIMES SCANNING SITE, all rights reserved

A. GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO POLICING IN HRM

The Halifax Regional Municipality is a unique entity in Canada.  Not only is it in fact the largest city in Atlantic Canada in terms of population (300,000+), it is also the largest municipality in geographical extent.  In fact, as its name implies, it is not really a city in the usual sense.  It is made up of a combination of urban, suburban, fringe and rural areas.   HRM was a marriage of the cities of Halifax and Dartmouth, and the town of Bedford, as well as the Rural Municipality of the County of Halifax.   At that time there were three separate municipal police forces, one for each of the cities, and the town.   The Halifax County area was under the jurisdiction of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police through detachments at Tantallon, Lower Sackville, Cole Harbour, Musquodoboit Harbour, Sheet Harbour, and Enfield.

The HRM is also unique, perhaps in all of Canada, in the present provision of policing.   When HRM was established the three municipal police forces were amalgamated into the Halifax Regional Police Service; however the RCMP remained with its jurisdiction over its former areas, with a few minor modifications.   The result is that this is, I believe,  the only "city" in Canada patrolled by two police forces.   Over the past few years, the two forces have become more and more cooperative.   Today five of the RCMP detachments have been combined into the Halifax Detachment (each remains as a sub-office) and the commanding officer has his office in the same building as the chief of the Halifax Regional Police.   Investigative units, Police dog services (K-9) and some administrative support services have become unified.   [Note however that the Enfield area and parts of the Musquodoboit Valley are patrolled by Enfield Detachment, which is not part of the Halifax Detachment, so that properly said, HRM is patrolled by HR Police, RCMP Halifax Detachment, and RCMP Enfield Detachment.]   Specialized federal statute oriented components of the RCMP are not part of this unified regional force.

Radio Communications 

As was previously announced, I am not providing any specific information regarding police communications in HRM, as I am in a conflict of interest position.    I can say that the integrated HRP/RCMP force does utilize the NS Trunk, with all internal communications being in the digital mode, with some also encrypted.    As of June 2005 a joint dispatch system was implemented, provided by the HRP and serving both forces.   To some extent the two forces share channels and therefore it has become much simpler to assist each other when necessary; however separate command structures still exist.    RCMP units retain the ability to communicate with RCMP units in the remainder of the province. A new dispatch centre operated jointly with the Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency, was opened in the Eric Spicer Building in Dartmouth, with a backup centre at Fire Station 8 in Bedford.   It is also likely that HRP dispatch would have access to liaison talkgroups for direct contact with Corrections (Burnside Correctional Facility), with the Military Police, with the Coast Guard, and with various EMO, GSAR and provincial government departments. 

HALIFAX COUNTY DISTRICT DETACHMENT OF THE RCMP:

For information on the RCMP in Nova Scotia in general please go to the RCMP page in the Nova Scotia section of this site.

HALIFAX REGIONAL POLICE:

The Halifax Regional Police Service ("HRP") is operated as a department of the Halifax Regional Municipality.  There are three districts for patrol/general duty services: Central, which is the peninsula area, East, which corresponds to the former city of Dartmouth on the east side of the harbour, and West, which is made up of the "mainland" part of the former city of Halifax, plus the area of the former town of Bedford.   Each zone has its own dispatch channel and a backup.  East and West channels are also used by the adjacent RCMP units.  For more information about the HRP, including maps of the three districts and descriptions of support and investigative services, I suggest that you visit the official website:  http://www.police.halifax.ns.ca/ .  

Please note that the separate Park Patrol made up of special constables does not anymore exist.   By-law enforcement in general does come under the Police Department but using personnel with particular powers, such as Parking Enforcement, Animal Control, and Unsightly Premises.   Of these it is thought that Parking is dispatched via the police system, with the others possibly coming under the Works dispatch system.    Please note that there are two dispatch centres in one building.  One is the joint Fire and Police centre and the other is the Works and RPAM (Real Property) centre one floor down.    HRM has a third dispatch centre for transit, located at transit headquarters in Burnside.

The 3 zones are divided into neighbourhoods to which one or more cars are assigned.  These zones are described unofficially here:

West:     1 Sambro Loop, 2 Spryfield, 3 Fairview/Armdale, 4 Clayton Park, 5 Bedford Highway, 6 Bedford

Central:  1 South End/Downtown South,  2 Southwest Peninsula,  3 Northwest Peninsula, 4 Downtown North, 5 North End

East:  1  SE/Westphal,   2 W Portland and South, 3 Prince Albert/W Portland. 4 W Downtown/ MicMac, 5 N End Dartmouth, 6 Burnside, 7 NE Caledonia /Waverly Road

Vehicles are  marked with individual numbers; however these are not used much on-air.   Regular patrol vehicles are identified by the area they are assigned to...   for example in West Zone.... car 3A is one (maybe the only one) assigned to neighbourhood 3.    3B is the second one in that area.  Often there only is an Alpha car.    Community liaison officers and detective units are identified by the handle of the officer in them, such as Golf14 which would be General Investigation officer #14, whoever that is.