In 2023, Lethbridge Police responded to nearly 38,000 calls for service and 99.5 per cent were resolved without any use of force. (Photo: LNN)

By Christian Oldale

Lethbridge Police releases use of force numbers for 2023

Apr 3, 2024 | 1:19 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The Lethbridge Police Service (LPS) did not use force in over 99 per cent of calls for service in 2023.

LPS recently presented the 2023 use of force data to the Lethbridge Police Commission. Last year, Lethbridge Police responded to nearly 38,000 calls for service and 99.5 per cent were resolved without any use of force.

In total, the 0.5 percent of cases that resulted in force being used involved 217 individuals. In those cases, 173 did not sustain any injuries, 20 sustained minor injuries that did not require treatment, 23 sustained injuries that required treatment, and none required hospitalization. 12 officers were injured in 2023.

In addition, LPS reported that no firearms were discharged in 2023, and the most common use of less-lethal force options involved the deployment of police service dogs and drawing or pointing a Conducted Energy Weapon or sock guns.

LPS also reported that 78 percent of the cases where force was used involved subjects who were perceived as being agitated, intoxicated by alcohol or drugs, having a mental health condition or being in a state of crisis. 19 percent had access to weapons, and three percent were described as being in a “normal” state.

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