Fewer Saskatoon police officers resorted to violent force in the field in 2025: Report

A recent report from the Saskatoon Police Service shows use of force incidents are down from the previous year. Stacey Hein has the story.

A new report to the Board of Police Commissioners details the Saskatoon Police Service’s use-of-force numbers for 2025.

The report found calls for service increased three per cent in 2025, while the use of violent force by police officers in the field was down 26 per cent compared to 2024.

Police Chief Cam McBride said community co-operation plays a role in the decline.

“Use of force is always a response to the behavior of somebody in the community, and where there’s compliance from individuals that we’re dealing with in the community, the use of force is always lower,” McBride said in an interview with CTV News.

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The report noted the Saskatoon Police Service switched to new software called BlueTeam in March 2024 and changed how incidents are documented, making year-to-year comparisons before 2024 unreliable.

There were 108,406 calls for service last year, according to the report, with force used in 183 incidents, meaning about 99.8 per cent of calls did not involve force.

The report also noted police now track multiple uses of force within a single incident, with 367 use-of-force occurrences reported last year, down from 497 in 2024.

Officers reported using physical force 156 times, down from 209 in 2024.

Officers used batons twice last year, down from six, the report said. Conducted energy weapons, commonly known as Tasers, were used 32 times, down from 49.

Police fired their guns marginally more last year, with three occurrences, up from two in 2024, and they pointed their weapons nine times, down from 23.

The report showed firearms were used on animals eight times for euthanasia purposes, four more times than in 2024.

Tactical Support Unit deployments are also classified as uses of force and were reported 30 times last year, according to the report.

McBride said officers continually assess situations when determining whether to use force, which can quickly escalate or de-escalate.

“If the officer feels threatened or if the officer perceives that somebody else in the community is feeling threatened or being threatened, then it escalates things,” he said.

“But ideally, no force is the best option.”

The Board of Police Commissioners provides civilian oversight and strategic direction for the police service. The next meeting is scheduled for June 18.