A new act enhances the existing powers of Saskatchewan police services in missing person investigations where there is no reason to suspect a crime has taken place.
The Missing Persons and Presumption of Death Amendment Act, 2018 came into effect Friday, states a release from the provincial government.
The amendments allow law enforcement agencies to:
• obtain a search order where a missing minor or vulnerable person is believed to be in a building;
• access a broader range of records including global positioning tracking records, employment records and school records;
• access information about a person who might be in the company of a missing minor or vulnerable person; and
• make an emergency demand for records where certain criteria are met.
The release states that when a person is reported missing and there is no reason to suspect a crime, police cannot rely on the Criminal Code to access personal information of persons reported missing. This can stall a missing person investigation.
“It is devastating for friends and families when a loved one goes missing,” Justice Minister and Attorney General Don Morgan said. “We must offer them every support available. These changes will ensure that police services have the most up-to-date tools to help find missing people.”
The Missing Persons and Presumption of Death Act was introduced in 2009. The Act establishes how the property of a missing person is administered, adopts presumption of death provisions and sets out how family members and law enforcement can access information about a person who is missing.
Saskatchewan was the first Canadian jurisdiction to create access to information provisions in relation to missing persons.
