The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) is the municipal police force for the City of

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. The current chief of the EPS is Dale McFee. The service has three deputy chiefs two sworn members and a civilian member. Chad Tawfik is responsible for the Corporate Services Bureau, Kevin Brezinski runs the Intelligence and Investigations Bureau, and Darren Derko heads the community policing bureau.

Operational structure

The EPS is divided into Six bureaus: * Community Policing Bureaus * North Bureau & South Bureau * Intelligence and Investigations Bureau * Corporate Services Bureau * Edmonton Police Service FPIU

Community Safety and Well-Being Bureau * Innovation and Technology Bureau

Patrol

The city is divided into divisions for general patrol purposes: * Northeast * Northwest * Downtown * West * Southwest * Southeast Each division is separated into four smaller districts to allow for better deployment of resources. The majority of police officers of the Edmonton Police Service serve within the community policing bureau as patrol constables, sergeants, detectives, or staff sergeants. Officers of the Edmonton Police Service have the highest first year constable salaries in Canada at a minimum of $71,195 per annum (or $34.09 an hour), EPS officers who work a shift where half or more of that shift falls between the hours of 4:00 p.m. and midnight receive an extra $1.10 an hour. EPS officers who work a shift where half or more of that shift falls between the hours of midnight and 8:00 a.m. receive an extra $1.20 an hour, increasing the minimum hourly rate for first year constables to $30.47 or about $63,621.00 per annum. Special event policing pays $93.89 an hour. Sergeants and detectives are paid a minimum $120,742.00 per annum, or about $57.82 an hour, and staff sergeants are paid a minimum $132,816.00 per annum, or about $63.60 an hour.

Criminal investigations

Within the specialized community support bureau – criminal investigations division, the major crimes branch is divided into economic crimes, homicide and robbery. These areas are primarily made up of detectives and staff sergeants. The serious crimes area deals with sexual assault, child protection, and vice. These areas are also made up of detectives and staff sergeants. The Edmonton Police Service is also a member of the

Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT) is an umbrella government agency uniting efforts by multiple Canadian law enforcement organizations. Known by the acronym ALERT, the agency was established in 2006. Its campaigns on behalf of the peopl ...

Guard of Honour and Historical Unit

The EPS Guard of Honour and Historical Unit is a special unit of the EPS composed of dedicated policemen who serve as professional ambassadors of the

City of Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

to the public. It was introduced to the EPS in 1998, and has provided consistent protocol demonstrations at events such as: * Remembrance Day parade * EPS Awards Day * EPS graduations * Dignitary escorts * Police officer funerals and memorials The historical unit ceremonially represents the EPS at its various historical events. The uniform that is worn is a replica of the EPS uniform worn in the early 1900s.

Pipe Band

The Edmonton Police Service Pipe Band was formed in 1914, although it was immediately dissolved at the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, with its musicians being transferred to the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

to join

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI, generally referred to as the Patricia's) is one of the three Regular Force infantry regiments of the Canadian Army of the Canadian Armed Forces. Formed in 1914, it is named for Princess Patrici ...

and lead the regiment into battle. Members of the pipe band also served as stretcher bearers for the regiment for the duration of the war during the war. The Pipes and Drums of the EPS were re-founded in 1961, and as a result of this historical arrangement, the band has grown closer with the PPCLI unlike other police bands. The band was first invited to play at the PPCLI

beating retreat Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle. History Originally it was known as watch setting and was initiated at sunset by the firing of a single ...

ceremony in 1964 and then at the regimental

trooping of the colour Trooping the Colour is a ceremony performed every year in London, United Kingdom, by regiments of the British Army. Similar events are held in other countries of the Commonwealth. Trooping the Colour has been a tradition of British infantry regi ...

in 1967. Today, it is the only non-military civilian band within the Commonwealth to wear the badges of three Canadian regiments: the PPCLI, the

Canadian Airborne Regiment The Canadian Airborne Regiment (french: links=, Régiment aéroporté canadien) was a Canadian Forces formation created on April 8, 1968. It was not an administrative regiment in the commonly accepted British Commonwealth sense, but rather a tactic ...

and

The Loyal Edmonton Regiment ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

. While serving as a public relations tool for the EPS, it still performs alongside the regiments today during public events in Edmonton.

Equipment and vehicle fleet

Road vehicles

Ford Police Interceptor Utility The Ford Explorer is a range of SUVs manufactured by Ford Motor Company since the 1991 model year. The first four-door SUV produced by Ford, the Explorer was introduced as a replacement for the two-door Bronco II. Within the current Ford light ...

Ford Police Interceptor Sedan The sixth generation of the Ford Taurus is the final generation of the model range manufactured by Ford (in markets outside of China and the Middle East). Introduced for the 2010 model year, the sixth-generation Taurus is the second generation o ...

Chevrolet Tahoe The Chevrolet Tahoe, and its badge engineered GMC Yukon counterpart, are full-size SUVs from General Motors, offered since 1994 and 1991, respectively. Since 1982, Chevrolet and GMC sold two different-sized SUVs under their 'Blazer' and 'Jimmy ...

* Chevrolet Silverado *

Ford F150 The Ford F-Series is a series of light-duty trucks marketed and manufactured by Ford since the 1948 model year. Slotted above the Ford Ranger in the Ford truck model range, the F-Series is marketed as a range of full-sized pickup trucks. ...

Ford Transit The Ford Transit is a family of light commercial vehicles manufactured by the Ford Motor Company since 1965, primarily as a cargo van, but also available in other configurations including a large passenger van (marketed as the Ford Tourneo in ...

Dodge Durango The Dodge Durango is a mid-size sport utility vehicle (SUV) produced by Dodge in three generations starting with the 1998 model year. The first two generations were very similar in that both were based on the Dodge Dakota and Ram Pickup, both fe ...

(Unmarked) *

Honda Ridgeline The Honda Ridgeline is a midsize pickup truck manufactured by Honda. The Ridgeline is the only pickup truck currently produced by Honda. The Ridgeline is built using a unibody frame, a transverse-mounted engine, and is only offered in a crew–cab ...

(Unmarked) *

Toyota Sienna The Toyota Sienna is a minivan manufactured and marketed by Toyota primarily for the North American and select East Asian markets. It is named for the Italian city of Siena, in the region of Tuscany. It replaced the first generation Previa van ...

(Unmarked) Each marked vehicle has the Whelen Legacy lightbar, (excluding the Ford Interceptor Sedans that are equipped with LED X light bars and some Code 3 sirens. The EPS uses the D&R RDS 16 siren in the majority of their fleet, as well as the howler brand.

Aircraft

Eurocopter EC120 Colibri The Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) EC120 Colibri ("hummingbird") is a five-seat, single-engine, light utility helicopter. Jointly designed and developed by Eurocopter, China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC), Ha ...

C-FEPS (retired in 2018) *

C-GEPS (backup to C-EPU starting in 2018) * Airbus H125 C-FEPU (entered service in 2018)

Rank insignia

History

Policing in Edmonton dates back to 1892, well before the founding of the province. That was when a town police force took over duties formerly served by the North West Mounted Police. This followed the Mounties saying they were unwilling to enforce law and order in the city following the 1892 Rat Creek Rebellion. 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. The Mounties resumed the maintenance of law and order in the City and the Edmonton Police Department was founded to stay in 1894. In 1911,

Alex Decoteau Alexander Wuttunee Decoteau (November 19, 1887 – October 30, 1917), was a Cree Canadian track and field athlete, police officer and soldier. A member of the Red Pheasant First Nation, he joined the Edmonton Police in 1911 becoming the first ...

was hired by the Edmonton Police Department. He was the first full-blooded aboriginal to be hired by a police department in Canada. On October 1, 1912, Annie May Jackson was hired as a police officer. She was the first woman constable in Canada, serving from 1912 to 1918. Edmonton police officers used an airplane to pursue a criminal in 1919. This was the first time a Canadian police service used this technology in a pursuit. Former WWI ace Wop May flew an airplane to assist the successful pursuit and capture of John Larsen, murderer of Edmonton constable William Nixon.

Policing changes

During the sixth decade of policing, from 1942 to 1952, the department continued to grow. In 1943, the Neighbourhood Police Force was seen policing Edmonton's streets. An Edmonton police officer was paired up with an American military police officer to patrol because there were many U.S. servicemen in Edmonton at the time. After 18 months, it was discontinued when there was no longer a need for it. The end of the main work on the

Alaska Highway