During a town hall hosted by Hamilton Centre MP Aslam Rana on July 31, Hamilton Chief of Police Frank Bergen responded to questions from teenagers who are critical of the role policing has in our society. He stated that Hamilton Police want to be better engaged with young people, especially in building relationships to address crime that harms young people.
He stated he wishes to form a chief’s youth advisory committee.
Bergen stated that a youth committee would only be useful if youth, “tell me what they are thinking, not what I want to hear.”
This comes in the context of increasing incidents of underage offenders committing violent crimes, including armed robbery, shootings, and murders. East Hamilton is presently plagued by at least one gang of youth criminals that has caused numerous businesses to lock doors, remove stock from public access, and prompted the City of Hamilton to shut down programming at the Dominic Agostino Riverdale Recreation Centre.
During the same town hall, Chief Bergen stated he has been discussing how Hamilton Police can improve partnerships with Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board Director of Education Sheryl Robinson Petrazzini.
In June 2020, HWDSB Trustees voted to revoke permission for Hamilton Police to operate its school resource officer program in public schools.
The HWDSB does not permit school resource officers in its schools, and Hamilton Police only attend public schools when invited or called for law enforcement purposes.
(The Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic School Board continues to permit police liaison and youth engagement activities.)
The discussions follow the introduction of Bill 33 by the Ontario Conservative government. The bill will amend the Education Act to require “boards to work with local police services to provide them with access to school premises, permit them to participate in school programs and implement school resource officer programs.”
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Published: August 3, 2025
Last updated: August 3, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
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