Just wanted to clarify one thing. BC is much different than the rest of the provinces, just because of size.
Outside of BC things usually take a little longer. I've been in for 5 years, in Manitoba. We don't have the large number of specialty sections that BC does. We just don't have the population to justify it. Therefore, generally it takes longer to get on a specialty section. If you go north to an isolated post you may get to a specialty section on your next transfer at 3 years, but generally its much longer. I became a Forensic Traffic Collision Analyst at 4 years service and there two others in the province with the same service and this is very unusual. However, in Manitoba our Traffic Services unit is so small that we only have about 8 traffic analyst whereas when I was on the course last summer in Chilliwack, BC our instructors were telling us that BC had 90 traffic analysts all of which are on traffic services. In Manitoba 3 or 4 of our 8 are on regular detachments and do the traffic analyst work as an extra duty whenever we are called. We are on call for traffic collisions 24/7. In the same respect we have only one Serious Crime Unit that does our murders, armed robberies, etc. Just one unit of about 10-12 people located at HQ in Winnipeg and that's it. There are about four Major Crime Units that assist detachments with major investigations, usually stuff that happens throughout several different detachment areas and needs a central coordinator. Like a theft ring that occurs in four different detachments or stuff like that. Three of those units are 3-4 man units and one is about 8-10. So you're only looking at 30-40 MCU/SCU members in the whole province so that's why you can't expect to get on the section at 3 years service, but the odd one does. There is only one Drug Section in the whole province, one I&P section, many sections have only one unit with a few people. We have only 3 PSD (K-9) members in the whole province. Only four of our biggest detachments have a General Investigative Section (GIS), each of 2-3 members, whereas my troop mates in the Lower Mainland BC tell me how every detachment has GIS, MCU, Vice, etc and all their long term and serious investigations are turned over to a specialty section. That doesn't happen in the prairies. I've done several sexual assaults, three attempted murders and major thefts with no help from any specialty section.
