After a daycare worker in Winnipeg was charged with possession of child pornography last month, RCMP now hope new fingerprint technology will spot known sex offenders.
It’s called LiveScan, digital fingerprinting technology that tells RCMP if the person is who they say they are quicker than the old fashioned ink-and-paper technique currently used.
"It can take up to nine weeks for turnaround while with the LiveScan method, it can be anywhere from a few days to a week," said RCMP Constable Miles Hiebert.
When a background check is done on daycare workers, personal care home workers or even coaches, a fingerprint is the last line of defence to determine if the applicant is a known sex offender.
LiveScan costs between $12,000 to $16,000 with 20 detachments across Canada already using them and plenty more to follow.
"They would be phased in, in an approach that would go to the busiest detachment first and then to the smaller detachments," said Constable Hiebert.
On Tuesday, the federal government backed the new technology.
"These changes make sure an offender can no longer hide their past by simply changing their name," said Federal Minister of Public Safety, Vic Toews.
But Toews says provinces and municipalities will have to pay for it themselves. So far, Thompson RCMP and Brandon Police are using LiveScan.
"The electronic method is going to be far faster and more desirable,” said Constable Hiebert. “It’s just a matter of getting it in place and online.”
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