'Habitually missing' youth expected to drive Saskatoon to 2,700 missing person reports this year

Missing personreports are the second most frequent call Saskatoon police receive, and the cases keep piling up. By the end of this year, the police service expects to see 2,764 missing person reports.

Saskatoon police have tabled a report that details the city's missing personreports from April to the end of September, and the results have changed very little since 2016.

Of the people reported missing, almost half are habitually missing meaning they have been missing two times or more. One young woman, whose information is included in the report, was reported missing 40 times over a six-month period.

Adults account for only 23 per cent of missing personcases, so the police are focused on young people. Sixty-five per cent of missing female youth are habitual missing persons, the Saskatoon police report says. Habitual missing persons account for 67 per cent of young men reported missing.

Maybe we could all learn something. Maybe we could start treating these kids as we do our own.- Don Meikle, director of EGADZ

In the last decade, police response to a report of a missing personhas changed. Reports are nowcreated the day a person is reported missing, which was not the case several years ago.

The case is then assigned immediately to a police officerand if it is not solved within four days, the file is turned over to the missing persons unit.

Over the last year, police have targeted the issue with a three-fold plan, including freeing up certain officers to spend their shifts working solely on missing personcases.

Saskatoon police Det.Insp.RussFriesen said the changes include "having patrol members gather more expertise in missing and habitual missing persons, partnerships withEGADZwhich initiated the Operation Runaway planand we're hoping that by getting these youth to tell us why they're going missing, we'll be able to reduce the numbers."

It seems to beworking, but slowly.

Straight to the source

Instead of meeting in board rooms and offices, EGADZ director Don Meiklesuggests asking habitual runaways why they're running.

"We need to start talking to the kids and asking them, 'What are you running from? Why are you running? What are you running to?'" he said.

"It's that straightforward."

Their answers, according to Meikle, are predictable, but still tragic.

"Their issues are family violence, separation from their family, trauma, sexual abuse, drug abuse, gang involvement."

EGADZ a downtown Saskatoon youth drop-in centre which runs 15 group homes of varying service levelsnow hosts forums for habitual missing persons to voice their concerns and connect with service providers.

"We have police, public health, addiction services, social services, our team there, and we meet with the kids and straight up ask them," said Meikle.

"Once we identify the reasons, they tell us the plan, they tell us what they want to do, they tell us what they need, and we put in a plan to support them."

The solution comes from the people for whom running away from home is a reality. Workers and police are then able to get a sense of what "home" looks like for the individual.

More staff, more funding

Saskatoon police, with the help of EGADZ staff through Operation Runaway, have identified 23 habitual runaways.

"But there's a lot more out there who need our help," said Meikle.

He says the organization needs at least 1.5 new staff positions to make a dent in the missing personreports that seem to be continually growing.

"We can't get any bigger, because you can't make kids promises if you can't follow through."

EGADZsays it's seen success with theyoung people the organization has beenable to reach through Operation Runaway. One young person expressed a desire to work in law, and was able to spend time with a lawyer.

Another enjoys the "circle" talks so much, she returns just to take part in the positive experience, even though she doesn't need the additional support.

"We seem like rocket scientists when we do this kind of work, but it's the same thing we do for our own children, so maybe we could all learn something," saidMeikle.

"Maybe we could start treating these kids as we do our own."