The Windsor Police Service expects to be using a new technology by this spring that will provide officers with critical information related to people out on bail for firearms-related offences.
The province has launched the Provincial Bail Compliance Dashboard, which allows police services to monitor, consolidate, and share information about people out on release for firearms-related offences.
The new tool is managed by the Ontario Provincial Police, and some services have already begun using it, including the Guelph Police Service, York Regional Police Service, Peel Regional Police Service, and Toronto Police Service.
The dashboard is available to all Ontario municipal and First Nation police services that want to participate.
Windsor Police Superintendent of Investigations Paolo DiCarlo says they expect to have use of the dashboard by the end of the first quarter of this year, with some IT issues still needing to be addressed before it's operational in Windsor.
DiCarlo says this technology is great for the service.
"We know what our problems are; we know what we need to do about those problems, and it really just makes us more focused on what we're trying to achieve as far as community safety is concerned," he says,
DiCarlo says if officers are conducting an investigation, this dashboard will provide officers with real-time information.
"It's definitely more efficient and more information sharing. And it holds people who have conditions accountable as well. Obviously, if you have conditions, you should be abiding by those conditions, and it's out there, and it's a lot easier to track people down," he says.
The dashboard is part of $112 million in spending the government is putting toward strengthening bail enforcement and monitoring for violent offenders, announced in April 2023.
According to the province, over 90 per cent of firearms used in crimes are illegally smuggled into Ontario from across the border.
In March 2024, police in Windsor and LaSalle launched the Offender Management Unit to track and arrest repeat and violent offenders who violate their bail conditions.
The Offender Management Unit is supported through a $2,276,437 grant from the Government of Ontario as part of the provincial government's investment to strengthen Ontario's bail system.
