'Immediate crisis': EPS chief rushing more officers into downtown Edmonton
'Immediate crisis': EPS chief rushing more officers into downtown Edmonton
'Immediate crisis': EPS chief rushing more officers into downtown Edmonton
After outlining a violent 24 hours in downtown Edmonton, the city's police chief promised Thursday to scramble more officers into the core faster than previously planned.
"We can’t wait. This will start next week,” Chief Dale McFee told police commissioners at City Hall.
"Two people lost their lives, and there's a whole bunch of other serious stuff in relation to that."
McFee listed suspicious deaths in Chinatown, "a brazen shooting outside a pub" and a stabbing at an LRT station, which all occurred Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, as reasons for his response.
There was also a death at a homeless camp which was later deemed non-criminal and an injury collision that McFee said all had to be handled to downtown officers.
“We are going to move a bunch of resources around. We’re going to have to figure out how we’re going to pay for this.”
McFee was repeatedly asked how many officers would be moved but he said specifics are still being worked out.
“You will see an increased visual presence in our downtown, including the core, Chinatown and 118 Avenue. We will seek increased collaboration with transit and other community peace officers if possible, but we will be going on our own if we have to,” he announced.
McFee apologized to other parts of Edmonton and said some neighbourhoods "aren't going to get (services) for a while."
'AN ISSUE OF THEIR OWN INACTION': JANZ
On Wednesday, Edmonton city councillors moved forward on freezing base funding for police, a move the commission chair said would amount to a $22 million cut.
McFee suggested he needs more money and expressed frustration at the possibility he may be in line for a frozen base budget.
“While we can address the immediate crisis of our downtown, this is not sustainable. We can maintain it for a few months, but beyond that it’ll risk too many negative impacts in other areas of the city," he said.
"We need to remove the politics and have some constructive discussions on how to move forward. We all have a role. Frankly, the discussions being had at the political level right now, are not helpful.”
McFee's comments were immediately criticized by Ward Papastew Coun. Michael Janz.
"The EPS leadership look to be trying to solve an issue of their own inaction," he tweeted in response.
"Crime is going down but 19.1% of calls are coming from downtown and they only assigned a fraction of resources. Like EPS did for LRT. The Mayor wrote the police a letter asking about downtown resources allocation and I will share the response when I receive it."
Mayor Amarjeet Sohi expressed condolences to the victims Thursday in a statement to CTV News Edmonton.
"I am devastated to hear of the violent attacks that happened in Edmonton’s Chinatown last night, leaving two valued community members dead," he wrote.
"I have heard Chinatown’s calls for increased safety measures, and will be working with the community and EPS to find immediate solutions, following my motion that passed on Monday to allocate funding and resources to Chinatown and the downtown core."
Sohi encouraged anyone affected by the attacks to reach out to Canadian Mental Health Services Canada for support.
McFee mentioned he may reach out to the province for more money, but he did not put a dollar figure or timeline on that.
Fallen R&B superstar R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday for using his fame to subject young fans - some just children - to systematic sexual abuse.
Police in Saanich, B.C., kept an area near a bank evacuated overnight as they continue to investigate a possible explosive device linked to a deadly gunfight with two suspected bank robbers.
Five months ago, the first 'Freedom Convoy' trucks rolled into Ottawa. After the federal government took the unprecedented step of invoking the Emergencies Act to end the protests, a series of inquiries and probes have been initiated. With the nation's capital bracing for more protests over the Canada Day weekend, CTVNews.ca takes a look at where the main commissions and studies stand.
A mother of three children is speaking out after spending a night on the floor of Toronto Pearson Airport with her young kids in a nightmare weekend of travel.
A toddler accidentally left in a vehicle for hours died Tuesday and police said his father was found dead in an apparent suicide at their Virginia home, police said.
Canada has signed an agreement to upgrade the NATO battlegroup it leads in Latvia to a brigade, a move that signals its commitment to the military alliance while continuing to resist calls to boost defence spending.
Canada's transport minister is speaking out about the 'unacceptable issues' that continue to result in significant delays. He says the federal government has done everything in its control to fix the issue.
Through the use of MRI technology and spearheaded by researchers at Western University, the cause of long COVID symptoms have been identified for the first time.
A proposed $150-million settlement with Purdue Pharma Canada covering all provinces and territories has been reached for the recovery of health-care costs related to the sale and marketing of opioid-based pain medication.
A severe thunderstorm only lasted about 10 minutes, but Nathan Canning says that was enough time to blow the entire roof off his Quonset barn and cause thousands of dollars' worth of damage to his Langdon property.
The Calgary Police Service confirms a 16-year-old has been charged following an investigation into reports the teen had tried to hire someone to commit a murder for them.
The road to decriminalizing drugs in Regina is being paved. On Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners met to discuss the possibility of decriminalizing personal illicit drug possession in the city of Regina.
Mandatory fire sprinkler systems in new residential builds and the Arcola Avenue corridor study are some of the items on Regina City Council’s agenda for its Wednesday afternoon meeting.
A death investigation is underway after a man’s body was found on the 1200 block of Rae Street early Wednesday morning, Regina Police Service (RPS) said in a release.
An RCMP officer who was among 22 people killed in the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting was remembered today during a regimental service in Halifax that recalled her brave actions.
A mother of three children is speaking out after spending a night on the floor of Toronto Pearson Airport with her young kids in a nightmare weekend of travel.
Canada's transport minister is speaking out about the 'unacceptable issues' that continue to result in significant delays. He says the federal government has done everything in its control to fix the issue.
Ontario is more than doubling the maximum rate a landlord can raise a tenant's rent next year – marking the highest rent increase guideline in the province in a decade.
Ahead of the hustle and bustle of festival season in Montreal, Quebec health officials are asking people to stay vigilant amid rising COVID-19 numbers.
Recent data shows more than half of all flights in and out of some of Canada's major airports are being cancelled or delayed, as frustrations for travellers mount due in part to increased summer travel and not enough airport staff.
A 27-year-old Montreal woman has been sentenced in New York State following her conviction of 'trafficking in protected wildlife,' according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Anne-Marie Ready, 50, and Jasmine Ready, 15, died from stab wounds following an incident at a home on Anoka Street Monday night, police said Wednesday afternoon.
"We choose not to celebrate the ongoing colonization, oppression and genocide of Indigenous peoples of this land," Moo Shu Ice Cream said in a social media post.
The family of a Black four-year-old who was removed from school by police has filed a lawsuit against the Waterloo Catholic District School Board seeking $1 million in damages for what they says is the board's discrimination and negligence.
A provincial task force is teaming up with Doctors Manitoba to release a new tool that will help Manitobans monitor the pandemic backlog of surgeries and diagnostic tests.
Recent data shows more than half of all flights in and out of some of Canada's major airports are being cancelled or delayed, as frustrations for travellers mount due in part to increased summer travel and not enough airport staff.
A woman who was trapped inside a bank during a robbery and fatal shootout with police near Victoria on Tuesday says there is one question still plaguing her a day later: Why didn't the gunmen just leave with the money?
Police in Saanich, B.C., kept an area near a bank evacuated overnight as they continue to investigate a possible explosive device linked to a deadly gunfight with two suspected bank robbers.
