CPS report says officers used force to de-escalate at average levels

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Calgary police officers in 2023 used force to de-escalate potentially deadly situations more often than the previous year — a sign police are using discretion in tense scenarios, says one local criminologist.

Officers are also increasingly relying on conducted energy weapons such as Tasers to de-escalate incidents, though they’re largely deployed as a warning, according to the CPS’ annual report to the Calgary police commission on de-escalation and use of force.

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Overall, there were 901 use-of-force incidents across the police service last year — 28 more than 2022 levels but below the number of incidents recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The increase in certain methods of force correlates with trends on the front line — more officer-public interactions, more weapons present in crime, and higher volume and severity of violent crime,” reads the report, authored by analyst Alexandra Hrk.

The 2023 numbers amount to one in 1,644 incidents resulting in force being used. Calgary officers made 579,998 public contacts last year, according to the report — about 15,600 more than 2022 but nearly 65,000 fewer than 2019, the most recent pre-pandemic year.

Doug King, a criminologist at Mount Royal University, said CPS’ use of force increased only modestly, which he said shows police have been properly trained to handle situations without using force to de-escalate a situation.

“It’s worse this year than it was last year, but it’s not worse by much,” King said. “We’re talking literally 28 more incidents in the city of 1.3 million people.”

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‘The good thing is they’re not shooting people’: criminologist

Calgary officers are also switching their methods in tense situations, the data show. Their use of conducted energy weapons such as Tasers increased 41 per cent in 2023 compared to the five-year average — but nearly half of those deployments were used as a warning method.

Dynamic takedowns also increased 50 per cent above the average, used in 367 incidents. Meanwhile, police service dog contacts dropped to 49 uses, 27 per cent below the five-year average.

Police pointed their firearm in a situation 32 times last year, above the five-year average of 21 — and they were fired on five occasions, only one incident greater than the five-year average.

“The good thing is they’re not shooting people, and that’s the ultimate use of force,” King said.

Calgary police in 2018 received a review of its use-of-force practices after a significant elevation in officer-involved shootings in 2016.

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Report follows 30-hour Penbrooke standoff

The report comes on the heels of a 30-hour armed standoff on March 16 in the east Calgary neighbourhood of Penbrooke that resulted in the suspect being killed by police.

The incident will be investigated by the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, which will likely take several months to a year to complete.

The officers’ decision to shoot the suspect, who fired more than 100 rounds during the standoff, will come out in ASIRT’s investigation, King said, adding he felt police waited an appropriate amount of time despite calls to act sooner.

“Something happened that precipitated the individual being shot and killed. I think we need ASIRT to be able to tell us about what that was,” King said.

mscace@postmedia.com
X: @mattscace67

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