The suspension of four Woodstock-area RCMP officers is raising more concern about law enforcement in New Brunswick.

Police say the officers were released for discreditable conduct. New Brunswick's Public Safety Minister Stephen Horsman says being a police officer doesn't mean you're perfect.

“I’ve seen people falter,” he said. “I’ve seen people who succumb to either stress or can’t cope with certain things.”

It's unclear if Horsman’s comments were referring to the officer’s suspension, but it did lead to questions in the legislature Wednesday about the impact it may have on the area.

“With 20 per cent of this force now on suspension, can the minister ensure residents that adequate policing is ongoing?” said Tory MLA Stewart Fairgrieve.

Horsman says there are still 20 members policing in the area.

The suspensions are the latest in a number of New Brunswick police officers under investigation.

Two Bathurst police officers will go to court in January charged with manslaughter in a shooting death.

Three officers in Fredericton are off the job with pay, while another was recently fired following an arbitration hearing.

In Saint John, an independent investigation into testimony heard at the Dennis Oland murder trial when a retired staff sergeant alleged he was pressured to lie under oath by an inspector will begin after the trial.

St. Thomas University criminology professor Michael Boudreau says the issue isn’t only that some police officers are behaving badly.

“I think it’s being paid attention to more, I think there's so much more scrutiny on police officers and police leaders that they really can’t deal with this behind doors as it were,” said Boudreau. “I think it’s a case of being reported more, both by the media and the public paying attention to these matters.”

Though Horsman says he’s not pleased with the suspensions, he wants to make sure people understand police officers have a stressful job.

“They're human beings. They’re just like you and I,” he said.

No criminal charges have been laid against the four Woodstock-area RCMP officers.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Nick Moore.