When I first came to intelligence in 1993, everything came into the Toronto police intelligence unit on a piece of paper and then we got faxes, then email, and then we got web access. I carry three BlackBerrys. The information out there is overwhelming.
I don't disagree that if the net is too broad it becomes of lesser or little value, but I also look and wrestle with—and I'm pretty technologically advanced, and certainly have lots of younger people who are—how important the information is because of the small threats.
I spent four and a half years in sexual assault in Toronto in the early days before we were so connected, chasing an unknown Scarborough rapist. Those gaps and the criticism that came from them is important for us to consider.
Justice Campbell wrote a report about information not being shared. It's interesting because of the reams and reams of information. I can think of a murder I worked on, the murder of a young girl in Toronto, which took 10 years to solve, and of the DNA evidence coming online. That information can be overwhelming and we should be careful in how much we collect, and then what we do with it is equally important.
I think there are threads that can help solve or prevent crime that have to be assessed and used to protect our public. I think that's important, but I always wrestle with the collection of everything. It overwhelms us very quickly.