New Inuk recruit talks benefits, challenges of policing in his hometown

Cst. Jerry Patterson has always wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps.

His father Allen Patterson served as a police officer with the Kativik Regional Police, now known as the Nunavik Police Service, for seven years.

“I spent my entire youth watching my dad be a cop,” Jerry Patterson said. “It inspired me to pursue that path.”

Now, Patterson is one of three Inuit officers in the Nunavik Police Service, which is working to increase Inuit recruitment. 

The number of Inuit officers has remained at three since at least last year, despite the hiring of Patterson in July, due to another Inuk officer who left the service a few months ago and has since taken a position with another police service.

Patterson works two-week rotations in his hometown of Umiujaq, as well as in Puvirnituq.

Knowing people in his hometown has sometimes been an advantage in de-escalating tense situations, Patterson said.

“Because I know people, I’m able to use a personal connection to help benefit them and myself and my colleagues,” he said.

At the same time, there have also been people who have reacted aggressively toward Patterson because of their existing relationship, but he said he doesn’t view these encounters as a negative. 

“It’s part of the job. I do my best to react to them positively and just talk with them and try to get them to calm down,” Patterson said. 

Having both Inuit and non-Inuit officers working in northern communities can help ease the pressure on Inuit officers who may be called to respond to incidents involving their own relatives, Patterson said. He added he’s not particularly close to much of his extended family but he recognizes other Inuit officers may face more difficult situations because of closer family ties.

“I believe a mixed force is the way that it should be,” Patterson said.

One of the advantages of policing in smaller northern communities is the opportunity to develop relationships with residents over time, Patterson said.

Because officers often respond to calls involving the same people, Patterson it’s possible to build rapport and communicate in ways that might help resolve situations. 

Patterson completed the six-month Royal Canadian Mounted Police program, offered in Regina, in June before being hired in July as an officer with the Nunavik police. He’s the second Inuk to graduate from the program since its inception in 1885.

He was first sworn in to the Nunavik Police Service in Quebec City in June and took the oath again at a second ceremony held in his hometown of Umiujaq on Sept. 23. The Umiujuaq ceremony was attended by his family, Police Chief Jean-François (Jeff) Bernier and Umiujaq Mayor Johnny Kasudluak.

Although he is only about four months into the job, Patterson said he hopes to remain with the NPS for his entire career in policing.

As for Bernier, he said his goal for the Nunavik Police Service is to encourage more Inuit to consider a career in policing and provide them with the support they need to succeed.

“Officers like Jerry will play an important role in showing that this path is both accessible and meaningful,” Bernier said Monday in an email.

In September, Nunavik’s public security committee rejected recommendations to give the regional government more control over police hiring standards and exempt Inuit applicants with certain criminal offences from automatic disqualification. They stem from an audit launched in July 2025 on policing in Nunavik after three police shootings occurred within eight months.

The committee said the proposals would create unequal hiring standards.

“We don’t want to have two classes of different police officers,” Bernier said at the time.