Government Signs MOU with Saskatoon Police Service to House Ballistics Lab

Released on April 4, 2023

The Saskatchewan Firearms Office has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Saskatoon Police Service to house its Firearms Ballistics Lab in the Service's headquarters for the next two years. 

Under the Memorandum, the Firearms Office will pay the Saskatoon Police Service $49,000 for improvements to the Service's existing indoor shooting range, and additional monthly payments for office space, parking and utilities. This agreement will be in effect from April 1, 2023 to December 31, 2025.

"Setting up an advanced ballistics lab like this is a big undertaking," Corrections, Policing and Public Safety Minister Christine Tell said. "This partnership will allow us to get a head start and make use of the ballistics equipment the Firearms Office currently possesses, while also giving them the time they need to develop a more permanent facility to use once the agreement ends."

The provincial Ballistics Lab at Saskatoon Police Service headquarters will house a variety of forensic ballistics equipment, including a BRASSTRAX acquisition station, which can be used to compare spent firearms cartridges and determine whether specific firearms have been used in a crime. The Lab will also be able to conduct firearms testing and tracing to determine the history of potentially illegal firearms, which is helpful in situations where firearms have been smuggled into Canada or have had their serial numbers altered.

"This agreement will significantly improve our ability to conduct important ballistics and firearms testing, which is currently being done by the federal government," Tell said. "By taking this on ourselves, we will be able to avoid the lengthy delays we are currently seeing for this important work." 

The Memorandum will also support closer working relationships with SPS and other Saskatchewan police agencies.

"The Saskatoon Police Service is pleased to assist with the development and implementation of a provincial Firearms Ballistics Lab," Saskatoon Police Service Superintendent Patrick Nogier said. "We continue to work with other law enforcement partners across the province to combine people, processes, and technology to solve and prevent gun-related crime." 

This agreement with the Saskatoon Police Service is being funded through the approximately $927,000 that was allocated for the Saskatchewan Firearms Ballistics Lab in the 2023-24 provincial budget. In 2023-24, the province dedicated approximately $8.9 million to the Saskatchewan Firearms Office, which will also fund:

• a Central Management and Services unit to administer The Firearms Act in Saskatchewan, which includes jurisdiction over the licensing, storage, transportation and carrying of firearms ($2.2 million);
• a Firearms Compensation Committee to determine the fair market value of any firearms, ammunition and related accessories being expropriated by the federal government ($1.3 million); and
• enhanced education and training for safe storage and firearms licensing.

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For more information, contact:

Noel Busse
Saskatchewan Firearms Office
Regina
Phone: 306-787-8959
Email: cpjumedia@gov.sk.ca