Edmonton Police Service

Infobox Police Department
name = Edmonton Police Service

motto =
established = 1892
jurisdiction = Municipal
sworn = 1320
non-sworn = 360
stations =
chief = Mike Boyd
website = http://www.edmontonpolice.ca/

Edmonton Police Service is responsible for policing in the City of Edmonton, Alberta.

Organization

The current head of the EPS is Chief Mike Boyd, who was previously the interim Chief of the Toronto Police Service. Recruited by the Edmonton Police Commission to start his term in January 2006, Boyd replaces Acting Chief Darryl DaCosta.

Operations

EPS is divided into sections:

* Patrol Service Bureau
* Investigative Service
* Administrative Services

The city is divided into divisions for general patrol purposes:

* North
* Downtown
* West
* Southwest
* Southeast

History

Edmonton's police dates back to 1892, well before the founding of the province.

On July 27, 1892, P.D. Campbell was the first police officer hired by the town of Edmonton. Aside from dealing with law enforcement issues, Campbell was also Edmonton's health and licence inspector.

On October 1, 1912, Annie Jackson was hired on as Edmonton's first female police officer, winning out over a field of 47 applicants.

Through the years, as Edmonton has grown, so has its policing needs. Today, the Edmonton Police Service is known as one of the most modern and progressive police organizations in North America, and, as of 2008, it employs approximately 1,530 sworn police officers and 530 non-sworn members.

Each year the Edmonton Police Serivce honours individuals for their service through a number of awards or medals including:

Jim Dempsey Customer Service AwardEssay for ExcellenceBeverly McLean Legacy BursaryPerformance, Bravery and Life Saving AwardsLong Service Medals (25 years)Police Exemplary Service Medal (20 years)

Police brutality

The Edmonton Police Service have faced several recent charges against members of their force. Most recently, on July 9th, 2008 two high ranking members of the Edmonton Police were found guilty of assalting a homeowner and illegally entering his home without a warrant. Staff Sgt. Jamie Ewatski and Patrol Sgt. Giovanni Fiorilli were convicted of the assault, while a third officer was found not guilty. The judge deemed the officers had assaulted Mr. Dubois at least 3 different times during the ordeal. [http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/cbc/080708/canada/edmonton_edm_police_verdict] In June, 2006 an Edmonton police officer was alleged to have struck an unarmed and handcuffed woman in the head, resulting in her falling to the ground [http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/story.html?id=ce7615fb-fd5e-4c6d-b069-e4b66138f327] , leaving her bloodied and injured. A journalist witnessed the incident and said the woman was simply being escorted to a bus leaving the hockey game when she uttered something to the officer who then approached her, handcuffed her and struck the woman on the side of the head. An internal police investigation was ordered but no charges were laid.

External links

* [http://www.joineps.ca/ Edmonton Police Service Recruiting]
* [http://www.police.edmonton.ab.ca/ Edmonton Police Service]
* [http://www.joineps.ca/aboutus/history/ EPS History]
* [http://www.edmontonpoliceassociation.ca/ Edmonton Police Association]
* [http://www.edmontonpolicewatch.org/ Edmonton Police Watch]