Police-Encounters-With-People-In-Crisis

30. I invited three distinguished individuals to be my Advisory Group: Dr. John
Bradford, an eminent forensic psychiatrist, Paul Copeland, a leading criminal lawyer,
and Norman Inkster, a widely respected former Commissioner of the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police.
F. Approach of the Report
31. With this background and effort in mind, this Report takes a holistic approach to
the mandate given to me. It is clear that police are part of the mental health system—
they are the front line mental health workers for many of the most dangerous
encounters. Preventing deaths includes preventing the crises in the first place, as well as
helping police to deal with crises better. One of the key themes of this Report is the need
for inter-disciplinary cooperation, learning and teaching, involving not only police and
mental health professionals, but also mental health consumer-survivors. It is their lives
and deaths that are at issue and they should not be treated as the problem being
discussed. They are our fellow citizens and should work with us to find solutions. I
return to this topic below and in many sections of the Report.
32. In preparing this Report, I have tried to be as comprehensive and helpful to the
TPS as possible. That does not imply in any way that defects are widespread. Rather, it
simply underscores that I have found that, because of the seriousness and complexity of
the issues, there is much to be considered.
33. The police have an extraordinarily important role in our society. To serve and
protect, they have unique powers and authority and heavy responsibilities and duties.
They can, under strict circumstances, use their firearms to take a life and to protect a
life. They take their roles seriously and society could not properly function without
them. In addition, modern policing has evolved in many ways and the TPS has shown its
adaptability over time to make changes that are required.
34. The culture of the TPS has also adapted over time, and it continues to evolve as
society itself evolves. By culture, I mean the prevailing attitudes, beliefs, and values of
the Service. Ultimately, in one sense the issues addressed in this Report all have to do
with police culture, because my recommendations aim to affect behaviour, and
meaningful change to behaviour involves assisting in the evolution of the attitudes,
beliefs and values that guide behaviour. I address the issue of police culture in more
detail in Chapter 5 and more generally throughout the Report.
35. Encounters of the TPS with people in crisis number approximately 20,000
annually. The vast majority of these encounters end peaceably and without incident.
But, most unfortunately, there are some lethal outcomes.
36. The premise of the Report is that the target should be zero deaths when police
interact with a member of the public—no death of the subject, the police officer
involved, or any member of the public. I believe the death of a fellow human being in
these encounters is a failure for which blame in many situations cannot be assigned; it is
more likely a failure of a system. Policies and procedures should be designed and
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