West Edmonton Mall shooting: Solutions to rise in violent crime complex as city reflects on brazen incident

Monday night's shooting at Edmonton's marquee tourist attraction is perhaps the most prominent example of recent violent crime occurring in a public place.

And while Mayor Amarjeet Sohi says it's "time to get tough" on gang violence, there are no simple solutions to make the public feel safer.

The Monday night exchange of gunfire in West Edmonton Mall's parking lot is the latest in a string of violent incidents across the city.

• An attempted hit in broad daylight in the city's west end at the end of June.
• A shooting on 118 Avenue, also at the end of June.
• A late-June standoff in the north-end Delwood neighbourhood.
• A series of random drive-by shootings in mid-July.
• A random fatal stabbing near an LRT station around the same time.
• A targeted shooting in central Edmonton a week and a half ago.
• A fatal stabbing in a north-end home.
• A murder on Whyte Avenue on Saturday.
• And now, a shootout in the parkade of the city's largest shopping mall.

"I am deeply concerned about the acceleration of violence," Sohi said Tuesday during a press conference, urging collective action to address persistent poverty, addictions and justice system issues.

"More gang violence taking place, we have seen more gun violence, and this is a trend for every other city, Edmonton is not immune to it."

The shooting at West Edmonton Mall is even more troubling to Chris Lewis, CTV's public safety analyst and a former commissioner for the Ontario Provincial Police, because of where it happened.

"Undoubtedly, this is one gang fighting another gang, and it happened to occur in a public place," Lewis told CTV News Edmonton. "There’s a lot of scariness around all of that."

Officials from West Edmonton Mall have not said much about the shooting, telling CTV News Edmonton in a statement that it "continues to work with the Edmonton Police Service in protecting our guests and providing above-standard safety and security for patrons."

At one time, the mall had its own community police office. Now, the closest EPS detatchment is three kilometres away. Still, Lewis says that having police close by is not necessarily a deterrent to violent criminals.

"Ultimately sometimes people are going to do bad things and the consequences of getting caught really aren’t an issue for them at all," he said. "They’re just going to do what they do."

The rise in violent crime across Edmonton may be giving residents pause about leaving their homes, but police say the city is still safe.

"We’re seeing more and more violence, but incidents like this are still very isolated and rare," acting Edmonton police Chief Darren Derko said on Tuesday. "But when they do happen, be prepared to get to a safe place."