‘An opportunity to reset’: New relationship blossoms between Edmonton city council and police

Some Edmonton city councillors said there was a noticeable and positive shift in the tone in the meeting between council, police and the police commission.

Four months after the province said it was looking into the “dysfunctional” relationship between Edmonton city council, police and police commission, that relationship appears much improved.

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and the police commission presented their annual report to council on Friday, with multiple councillors commenting on a welcome change in tone during the discussion that followed.

“This is the most productive conversation that we have had with EPS, and I’m very pleased with the annual report,” said Mayor Amarjeet Sohi.

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The report itself covered some positive shifts for the city, including overall crime falling by 1.3 per cent in 2024, a reduction in domestic violence over the past two years and the severity of crime trending down.

Another success was the work police did on the Edmonton Transit System last year.

“We’ve seen some great results in terms of increasing number of arrests, interactions with the public, we’ve actually seen a decrease in violence,” said EPS Interim Chief Warren Driechel.

“Crime is trending down, severity is trending down, confidence is higher and improving, there’s a lot in here,” said Ward papastew Coun. Michael Janz.

EPS fielded numerous questions from council, covering the funding formula that gave EPS an extra $12 million last year based on inflation and population growth, cracking down on noisy vehicles, police visibility in the community and better “customer service” for Edmontonians.

“The ability to follow up on things, like if they do report, but then they don’t necessarily hear anything back,” explained Ward Métis Coun. Ashley Salvador.

“We have heard complaints of people that would be calling the police for something and they’re like, ‘And then I don’t know what happened to this.’ And I don’t think that’s very fair,” agreed EPS Interim Chief Devin Laforce.

The collaborative tone of the meeting was notable enough for multiple councillors to point it out publicly.

“I personally have palpably felt the change in relationship between council, commission and service,” said Ward Karhiio Coun. Keren Tang. “It is remarkable what a few months can do.”

“It has been like night and day over the past several months,” added Ward Dene Coun. Aaron Paquette. “I can say that this is the kind of relationship that we always should have had, and that Edmontonians deserve.”

“With new players on the ice, there’s an opportunity to reset,” Janz said.

In addition to new players Driechel and Laforce, who took over from former police chief Dale McFee after he stepped down to take a provincial role, former city councillor Ben Henderson is on the roster as police commission chair.

He replaced John McDougall, who resigned in December after it became public that he was planning to finish his term from Portugal.

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Friday’s report was the first one given by the new interim chiefs. Councillors are hopeful the new relationship will lead to a safer city.

“(It’s) a shift towards a much more collaborative working relationship,” Janz said. “I’ve toned down the rhetoric, others have toned down the rhetoric, I think we all have our part to play in this.”

A full version of the report presented to council can be found here.