Video shows Edmonton police officer pushing woman to the ground

A video shows a police officer shoving a woman to the ground, but Edmonton police say there are no grounds for an investigation.

According to police, a citizen reported that two women, one of whom was armed with a knife, were about to fight.

The officer arrived on scene and observed a woman holding a knife.

“The officer directed the woman to drop the knife, but she refused, expressing her affiliation to a criminal gang, and walked away in an area where bystanders were present,” said EPS spokesperson Cheryl Voordenhout in the statement.

“The officer considered his use of force options, given the suspect was armed, and determined pushing her to the ground would require the least amount of force possible to allow him to safely arrest the suspect.”

After a review of the incident, EPS says there are no grounds for investigation by its Professional Standards Branch.

The video, which is 12 seconds long, does not show what led up to the incident.

With the video zoomed in, an object falls out of the woman’s hand when she’s pushed.

Police say they recovered a knife at the scene.

Judith Gale, the organizer of Bear Clan Beaver Hills House, posted the video to social media.

She says she received it from someone who wanted to remain anonymous because they fear repercussions from police.

“They felt that they would be a target for EPS on the street, so they sent it to me, and asked if I would do it.”

She says she knows the woman in the video but she doesn’t know where the woman is or what her condition is.

“They put her in the vehicle, and we don’t know if she’s in remand, or if maybe they let her go around the block. I have no idea.”

Gale says she plans to file a formal complaint over the incident, and she wants the officer taken off the beat because she says seeing him in the future will be frightening for others who are aware of the incident.

“Every time they see that face, they’re going to know that he’s a violent man. And it’s going to trigger them, and it’s going to make them feel unsafe.”

“Put a public complaint online. And the more public complaints regarding this gentleman, maybe he’ll be taken off that beat and taken off the street. 

Sgt. Mike Elliott, president of the Edmonton Police Association, says the officer used the best option available to him at the time.

“Policing and use of force sometimes is ugly. And the intent is not to hurt anyone, the intent is to stop the situation as soon as practical,” he told CTV News Edmonton.

EPS says the woman has been charged with possession of a dangerous weapon and has now been released, uninjured.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson.