Underfunding of their police service: Mashteuiatsh wins his case before the Supreme Court

The community of Mashteuiatsh wins an unequivocal victory before the Quebec government after a seven-year legal battle.

The Supreme Court in fact ordered the government to pay it more than a million dollars to compensate for the chronic underfunding of its independent police service.

Chief Gilbert Dominique even speaks of systemic racism.

“Because we were a First Nation with a different population and needs, we did not consider this perspective,” he declared at a press briefing. This is systemic racism, rooted in the system.”

Police funding has always been the subject of short-term agreements with governments.

From 2013 to 2017, the Mashteuiatsh service suffered from an accumulated underfunding of $1.6 million. The community initiated civil proceedings in 2017, and obtained a favorable judgment from the Quebec Court of Appeal in 2022. Ottawa then agreed to pay its share, but Quebec turned to the Supreme Court.

This morning, 8 of 9 judges ruled that the Quebec government had broken the honor of the Crown and demonstrated bad faith and blatant discrimination.

For example, a police officer normally costs the Quebec state $170,000. For Mashteuiatsh, it was $109,000, because the Quebec representatives always replied that there was no more money.

The spirit of the judgment of the highest court in the country is that all Indigenous communities across Canada can negotiate as equals with governments.

Assembly of First Nations Chief Ghislain Picard spoke of a historic day.

The current agreement for the operation of the Mashteuiasth police service ends on March 31, 2025. Chief Dominique recognizes that funding has improved in recent years.