Police Use of Force Up as Violence Spikes in Edmonton
Edmonton Police Commission heard Thursday that reported violent incidents are rising, driven by a surge in extortion cases, though 86% of encounters don't result in injuries.
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Statistics on police use of force topped Thursday's Edmonton Police Commission meeting, with the Edmonton Police Service reporting a rise in violent incidents tied largely to a series of extortions.
"We have some concerns with the number of extortions that are occurring," said Acting Insp. Glen Klose. "With extortions naturally comes violence."
The increase correlates with EPS responding to more incidents overall. Despite the uptick, 86 per cent of reported use-of-force incidents did not result in injuries to non-officers. Injuries to those arrested are also on a downward trend. Officers were not injured in 97.5 per cent of reported incidents.
Klose emphasized that EPS training prioritizes de-escalation. "Making sure that we're communicating as effectively as possible, understanding what this person is going through at this moment, and how does that allow us to slow a situation down," he said.
The commission also noted batons are rarely used in either potential or actual use-of-force situations. When asked if EPS would phase out batons to save money on training and purchasing, police said they are already exploring the possibility.
On criminal pursuits, EPS reported a 95.1 per cent success rate for intervening when someone flees, and a 97.2 per cent success rate when police prevent a flight before it begins. Most pursuits last under one minute.