Winners >Sergeant Dave Dort

Certificate of Distinction

Sergeant Dave Dort
RCMP, Grand Falls/Windsor District

Faced with a disturbing increase in requests for police interventions because of property damage, assaults, bomb scares, and so on in local schools, Sergeant Dave Dort developed a response plan using the principles of restorative justice. 

Sergeant Dort could see there was an underlying problem of substance abuse by youth in the community; he could also see the traditional ways of responding to the resulting offensive behaviour -- school suspensions or criminal charges -- were not working.  He saw an opportunity for a new approach -- one using community-based alternatives to the court system but one that still held youth accountable for their actions.

He began by offering presentations on the concept of restorative justice to teachers and public officials.  He also met with many young people to discuss some of the negative consequences of substance abuse for themselves, their peers and their communities.  He helped the schools develop a new discipline policy based on restorative justice principles and he worked with students to develop an educational video on the dangers of substance abuse.

Sergeant Dort gave the project credibility with youth by involving students directly in the production of the video entitled "Good Times Gone Wrong: Issues in Underage Drinking".  The video used local youth as actors and involved a total of 120 youth from four schools in its actual production.  The video is used as an alternative to conventional presentations by authority figures and has resulted in a significant decline in the number of requests for police interventions in the school, fewer school suspensions and a better appreciation of societal values among the youth of the community.

By providing the framework for a restorative justice program and by mobilizing the efforts of several groups, including teachers, parents, the crime prevention community and youth, Sergeant Dort successfully implemented the use of police discretion in dealing with youth crime in his community. 

Contact person:

Sergeant Dave Dort 709-489-2121