Law enforcement in Canada

[5] Since the 1990s, a framework has existed for First Nations to establish their own police services, funded entirely by the federal and provincial governments and regulated by provinces.

Every Canadian territory and province, with the exceptions of Ontario and Quebec, relies on the RCMP to provide at least some provincial or municipal police services.

[22] The force has faced criticism for its uniquely broad mandate,[23][24] and a partially-redacted 2019 memo to then-Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair "confirmed" for the Minister that "federal policing responsibilities have been and are being eroded to meet contract demands.

[29] The CFMP provides police, security, and operational support services to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and the Department of National Defence (DND).

[31] CFMP officers have authority over any person subject to the Code of Service Discipline (CSD), regardless of their position or rank, and can charge members of the broader public when a crime is committed on or in relation to DND property or assets, or at the request of the Minister of Public Safety, the Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada, or the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The Ontario Provincial Police and Sûreté du Québec provide provincial police services to Ontario and Quebec, respectively,[44][45] the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary provides community and provincial police services to select urban communities in Newfoundland and Labrador,[46] and the Organized Crime Agency of British Columbia, the Unité permanente anticorruption, and the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes provide specialized criminal law enforcement services in British Columbia and Quebec.

There are municipal police services in nine provinces, with 12 in British Columbia,[58] seven in Alberta,[59] 12 in Saskatchewan,[60] 10 in Manitoba,[61] 44 in Ontario,[62] 31 in Quebec,[50] nine in New Brunswick,[63] 10 in Nova Scotia,[64] and three in Prince Edward Island.

[70][71] As of 2022, there are regional police forces in British Columbia,[72] Alberta,[73] Saskatchewan,[74] Manitoba,[75][76] Ontario,[62] Quebec,[77] New Brunswick,[78] and Nova Scotia.

[91] Select special constables in British Columbia and Ontario were armed with handguns in the wake of the 2014 Parliament Hill shooting.

Métis self-government exists only in eight settlements in Alberta,[154] none of which have the authority to raise police services, but may, with provincial approval, establish bylaw enforcement agencies.

[164] Beginning in the 1960s, the federal government began to withdraw RCMP officers from reserves in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec in favour of provincial control over First Nations policing.

)[179] Other First Nations police services have struggled to pay for officers' wages and benefits or fill frontline positions because of budget shortfalls.

"[181] Earlier that same year, the federal government began engaging First Nations about changes to the program and Indigenous police legislation.

[197] The Fort McKay First Nation in the Alberta oil sands maintains a Park Ranger Program — staffed by peace officers able to enforce First Nation by-laws but only report violations of provincial or federal law — to patrol the reserve's parks and wilderness and provide assistance and education to band members and visitors.

[193] Some First Nations in Saskatchewan operate "peacekeeper" programs, whose staff do not have law enforcement or police powers, to respond to non-violent calls for service, vehicle accidents, and fires.

[203] Similar programmes exist in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where volunteer organizations like the Bear Clan Patrol and the Mama Bear Clan conduct regular patrols of Indigenous neighbourhoods, liaise with Winnipeg Police to search for missing people, and deliver food to unhoused residents.

[105][210][202] As of 2024, both forms of the model are common across Canada, and tiered policing is practiced in Yukon,[193] the Northwest Territories,[209][202] British Columbia,[210][211] Alberta,[212] Saskatchewan,[103] Manitoba,[105] Ontario,[213] Quebec, New Brunswick,[214] and Newfoundland and Labrador.

[216] These investigators are fully integrated into the organization, given limited police authority, and are charged with interviewing witnesses and obtaining and executing search warrants, among other duties.

[217] Non-police specialists fall into a variety of categories and are referred to by different titles depending on the individual employer and role.

[206][227] The Saskatoon Police Service employs special constables, referred to as "alternative response officers," to guard crime scenes, direct traffic at emergencies and events, and conduct foot patrols in high-crime areas.

Since 2021, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police has employed Civilian Criminal Investigators, unarmed peace officers recruited from non-police fields, to assist with technical computer science or financial crimes.

[236] Similar programs exist in parts of Ontario;[237][238] parts of Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island;[239][240][241] Alberta and Saskatchewan, where they are operated by each province's respective provincial health authority;[242] Winnipeg, Manitoba;[242] Saint John, New Brunswick;[243] the Halifax Regional Municipality;[244] Newfoundland and Labrador;[245] and some First Nations.

The incident prompted the Toronto Police Service and Royal Newfoundland Constabulary to put orders for Tasers on hold.

[261] The Happy Valley-Goose Bay Municipal Enforcement Department, a special constabulary in Newfoundland and Labrador, equipped its officers with body-worn cameras briefly in 2021 before the province's privacy commissioner recommended that the Town stop the program because of concerns that video footage was not adequately protected.

[263][264] In British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia, municipal police officers generally wear royal blue trouser piping instead of red.

The adoption of navy blue shirts began in the 1990s and was primarily driven by a desire to make uniforms more professional, as police executives felt that lighter colours showed dirt and sweat too readily.

Beginning in the mid-2010s, an increasing share of police forces in Ontario have allowed frontline officers to wear ballcaps instead of forage caps.

[274] In the late 2010s and early 2020s, many Canadian police services began ordering vehicles painted grey, navy blue, or black to replace white- and silver-coloured cruisers, sparking controversy about their accessibility to the public and visibility in low-light conditions.

[275] In every province and territory, police services are entitled to use red and blue lights on marked and unmarked emergency vehicles.

[280] Most special constabularies use fleets of marked police-model vehicles, and many are painted in colours that reflect the larger corporate branding scheme of their parent organization.