Edmonton Police Association

10150 – 97 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5K 2T5

Ph: 780-496-8600 Fax: 780-428-0374

To the Citizens of Edmonton:

I would like to provide perspective and information regarding the women and men of the
Edmonton Police Service (EPS) who serve your community. Much of the following information
was provided to city council on June 15, 2020. I wish to focus on the following items to hopefully
provide clarity on them.

Recruit Selection: The selection criteria of all municipal police services in Alberta is governed by
the guidelines as set by the Alberta Solicitor General Recruit Selection Standards. There is an
eight-step process which involves criminal history and background checks, multiple interviews of
the applicant, reference checks and a polygraph. Once successful, the candidate undergoes 27
weeks of training, during which recruits receive instruction in areas such as bias awareness,
community conversation, historical trauma and smudging, LGBTQ2S+ training, police impact on
Indigenous historical trauma, police legitimacy, privilege walk, discussions on power, privilege
and identity, youth speak out, trauma informed childhood experiences and the correlation of the
victims/offender overlap. After the 27 weeks, the recruits are then moved to the street for a
minimum 15 weeks with an experienced training officer

Defunding the Police: If the argument is that police should not be the agency of first resort for
mental health calls or wellness checks, then police are in complete agreement, however the safety
of anyone attending to assist with mental health is important. We have never lobbied to expand
our mandate; these are jobs that are downloaded to police when other agencies are not
adequately funded to meet the growing demand. Psychologists and psychiatrists take days to
make proper mental health diagnoses under clinical conditions. Police are often expected to do
the same in a matter of minutes, under the worst possible conditions.

In Edmonton we are responding to approximately 1 call every 3 minutes, 24 hours per day. EPS
members were dispatched to 175,000 calls in 2019. Less than 1% of those involved any use of
force at all, meaning 99% of all calls were resolved without any need for physical restraint or force.
Further, only 0.2% of calls resulted in a formal complaint being filed, and those complaints were
all investigated and either dismissed as unfounded, or the officers were disciplined under the
Police Act. This means that 99.8% of all calls were handled without any issue or complaint. With
traffic stops, members walking the streets (beats), School Resource Officers, etc., we estimated
there are close to 1 million public interactions per year with no issues or concerns.

The demand for police service keeps growing, which is why budgets keep expanding. Setting
arbitrary numbers to cut policing budgets (i.e. 10% or 20% across the board) without having a
realistic plan to address the service shortfall, or reduce demand, is a dangerous proposition. The
reality is that there will always be a need for a police response when public safety is in jeopardy,
even if other social services are expanded to meet demand. For example, in 2019, EPS
responded over 3400 times to assist EMS with their safety and assistance and over 3100 times
to assist social agencies such as Hope Mission and Boyle Street Coop. We need to recognize
that the overwhelming majority of calls, whether wellness checks, or mental health service calls

An Affiliate of the Alberta Federation of Police Associations and of the Canadian Police Association
are handled professionally, and without escalation by officers who are well-trained. Canada
already has the lowest police/population ratio of any of our comparator G-7 or Commonwealth
countries, and our front-line officers are stretched thin and understaffed, which has led to higher
prevalence of mental health issues within policing itself. Police want to be productive partners in
any discussion about reforming how these calls are handled. We need to find evidence-based
solutions to these problems, but they will not be solved by inflammatory rhetoric. Police officers
did not write the laws they are asked to and obligated to enforce. Police officers did not create the
poverty that disproportionately affects certain groups in our community and brings them into more
frequent contact with the law. Police officers did not create the residential school’s system that
has devastated indigenous lives. These issues are societal issues and we must deal with them
together, by addressing all the institutions involved in creating and implementing unjust and
unequal policies and laws.

The Role of Police Associations: There is a lot of misunderstanding around what Police
Associations do in Canada. We negotiate salaries and benefits with employers, participate in joint
occupational health and safety committees, and grieve violations of collective agreements. Our
Association do not endorse political candidates or play an active role in partisan politics. Police
Associations have a legal obligation to defend members under the “duty of fair representation” as
per Alberta Labour Laws. Members of an Association are entitled to be fairly represented in
discipline proceedings, even in the worst cases. Due process is a cornerstone of the justice
system.

Associations play no role in the hiring, training, or promotion of police officers, that is up to
management and executive ranks. In Alberta (and the rest of Canada), unlike the US, Police
Associations and collective bargaining have no formal role in police discipline. Alberta's Police
Act excludes matters of discipline from being part of a collective agreement. Associations are
often just as frustrated as the public with delays in oversight investigations and accountability
processes. Investigations that take over a year to complete have a serious negative impact on
our members, regardless of the outcome.

We have been asking for over a decade to change the current system. We do not want our
members investigating one another. We want an independent, transparent, accountable, and
robust agency, such as ASIRT, to investigate legitimate complaints against our members. Waiting
two, three, four, and even up to ten years for a conclusion of a complaint helps no one. It can
create animosity, depression, and dis-trust for all involved. We understand we must be
accountable. We also understand the ramifications of making a mistake. We are not robots; we
sometimes must decide in seconds and do not have the luxury to step back and take our time to
make the perfect decision. We are human just like you.

We are also engaged in building strong communities. We have supported and continue to support
over 25+ charitable organizations and events such as YWCA for domestic violence, Little Warriors
for child sexual abuse, Mayor’s Pride Lunch, and the Special Olympics. Associations are one of
the biggest funders of public safety research in Canada. We support evidence-based solutions to
help resolve current problems affecting our communities.

An Affiliate of the Alberta Federation of Police Associations and of the Canadian Police Association
Effects upon our Members: Our members did not create racism, social inequality, or social
inequity. We are a part of the community and a reflection of our society. I do not believe our
elected officials truly understand the vast number of traumatic and devastating calls we respond
to and attempt to resolve. These calls affect our mental health in a manner which it remains with
us for the rest of our lives. Its does not go away when we finish our shift.. To our city councillors
and local MLA’s: Have your ever been on a shift to see what really occurs in our city? I encourage
you to join our members for a shift.

We are there for our citizens 24/7, 365 days a year. It does not matter to us of your ethnicity,
creed, religion, sexual orientation, or occupation. It does not matter if there is a tornado or raging
snowstorm, we will respond and help you to the best of our abilities. We have been spat on, had
faecal matter thrown on us, stabbed, shot, and killed protecting our community and we will still
protect you regardless of the violence and post traumatic stressors we endure. Five years ago, in
June 2015, we lost a member protecting a family from a racist so please do not think for one
minute we do not care about every citizen.

We all want a better society where everyone is treated with mutual respect. Our whole community,
including our members, must work together to end racism and bigotry but focusing the blame on
policing and police officers is incorrect and short sighted. Please allow us to work together to build
trust and relationships for everyone. We all want a better community.

Michael Elliott

Michael is the President of the Edmonton Police Association, Director of the Canadian Police
Association and Vice-Chair of the Alberta Critical Incident Advisory Council

An Affiliate of the Alberta Federation of Police Associations and of the Canadian Police Association