Thunder Bay police chief reacts to inquest recommendations into First Nations student deaths

The chief of police in Thunder Bay, Ont., says he looking forward to partnering with other groups in the community to ensure the city is a safe place for First Nations students.

J.P. Levesque was reacting to the recommendations delivered Tuesday by a coroner's inquest examining the deaths of seven First Nations students who had left their remote communities to attend high school in the city.

• Jury in First Nations student deaths inquest set to deliver recommendations in Thunder Bay, Ont.

"We look forward to the opportunity to ensure the safety of these youth from the northern communities while they're in our community," he said.

About 10 of the 145 recommendations pertain directly to the police and "we certainly acknowledge the recommendations as something that is positive. A number of them we've completed or already started," Levesque said.

For instance, members of his force now travel with Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service officers to visit Grade 8 students in their home communities before they come to Thunder Bay for school.

As well, "it's probably long overdue," Levesque said of the suggestion that an Indigenous representative be added to the police services board.

"The police service is supposed to reflect the community and we certainly try out best with that and certainly the police services board should be looked at the same way."

Levesque also favours the recommendation to create a working group to establish best practices to follow when a person is reported missing in the city.

"There has been certainly a lot of learning over the years since the last investigation and we've changed things as we went along, as we found problematic areas with investigations," he said.

'Everybody sees the need'

Over his five years as chief, Levesque said he has been working to build relationships with Aboriginal leaders in Thunder Bay, including those at Dennis Franklin Cromarty high school and the Northern Nishnawbe Education Council.

"The ability to pick up the phone and call the principal at DFC or the director of NNEC or even the Grand Chief, those kinds of communication are important," he said.

"I think there is certainly a willingness, and everybody sees the need to get going on them [the recommendations] as soon as we can and hopefully before the start of the next school year in September."