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Samson Cree Nation is in talks with the province for a First Nations police force for Maskwacis.
The meeting with Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley at the Alberta legislature on May 2 comes on the heels of two incidents where shots were fired at homes in Maskwacis.
Samson Cree Nation Councillor Kirk Buffalo told Ganley they are in “crisis mode.”
The proposal for a First Nation police force sees the costs split evenly between the provincial and federal governments. The force would focus on community policing to address its own problems, said Luci Johnson, a court worker for the Samson Cree Nation, who also attended the meeting.
A request was also made for additional funding to allow the community's Elders to create more spiritual and cultural programming. Johnson said the Elders provide knowledge and guidance to people now for little or no money.
Buffalo said the band intends to make the same proposal to Ottawa.