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This article was published 2/10/2015 (1817 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg’s police chief is defending the decision to send a police escort to rush an NHL hockey team to the MTS Centre in time for a game against the Jets, saying the escort has been unfairly scrutinized.

"We are a city on the world stage, and the NHL is a significant player. If were not able to assist them to have the game occur on time for our citizens, for the international audience, I am certain we would have had a black eye in terms of the Winnipeg Police Service, the City of Winnipeg. And so it’s important when we make a decision like this that we’re thinking about the broad scope impact," Clunis said Friday.

MELISSA TAIT / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg Police Chief Devon Clunis

A flight delay had the Ottawa Senators scrambling to make it to the rink on time to face the Winnipeg Jets for their 7 p.m. game Sept. 29. Around 5:30 p.m., the police service got a call from True North Sports and Entertainment asking for an escort to usher the team buses from the airport to downtown Winnipeg – a roughly 20-minute drive.

The police service billed the sports team for the cost of the escort, and Clunis said Friday no overtime was incurred as a result.

He said he wasn’t involved in the decision to provide an impromptu police escort, but that he’s "absolutely supportive of it."

"At the end of the day, I absolutely support that decision because I thought it was the right decision for our city, for our citizens, and it was absolutely no cost to the city whatsoever."

Mynarski Coun. Ross Eadie raised the issue at Friday’s police board meeting.

"In determining this urgent need to escort the bus, did we take any staff who were working shifts out on the street?" Eadie asked. "That’s my only concern."

Clunis dismissed Eadie’s suggestion that the police escort could have contributed to a backlog in response times.

"I have to be honest. Our elected officials — if a day or two after this event and there was a huge negative spotlight on our city, many of you would be looking at us and saying ‘wasn’t there something that you could have done?’ So I think we have to support our members when we made prudent decisions on behalf of our city."

"Speaking as a politician," Eadie interjected, "I’d say too bad the game started late."

Police board chairman Scott Gillingham said he’s glad the cost of the police escort was reimbursed to the city.

"It was an operational decision. It’s in the purview of the police service to make those decisions," he said.

The police service provides escorts during parades and community events, but those require a permit and must be arranged in advance. Often, though, the police service provides escorts with little notice at no cost, the chief said.

"Most of the escorts that you see taking place in our city, a lot of it is done on the service’s time. People get it all for free," Clunis said.

Katie.may@freepress.mb.ca