The death of a 62-year-old peace officer near High River earlier this month has triggered Alberta’s solicitor general to conduct a safety review to determine whether or not bylaw officers should carry firearms.
However, local bylaw supervisors indicate officers in the Bow Valley may not need to carry such weapons since situations involving violent subjects don’t often occur.
A retired Mountie with 35 years of experience, Foothills peace officer Rod Lazenby died on Aug. 10 after investigating a dog complaint at a property near Priddis.
Initial police reports said Lazenby was beaten and eventually dropped off at a Calgary police station in medical distress. He died later at a nearby hospital, which marked the first death of a community peace officer in the province.
The man who resided on the property, Trevor Kloschinsky, has since been charged with first-degree murder. Hearing about this unfortunate death has hit home for some bylaw officers.
“What we saw in High River was very tragic,” said Chris Montgomery, supervisor of Canmore Bylaw Services. “It’s affected every member of our staff deeply. Most of us knew the gentleman from one level or another. It’s very sad when these things happen.”
Following the death, an online petition was created, urging the solicitor general, Jonathan Denis, to implement changes to allow properly trained peace officers to carry firearms and conducted energy weapons during the performance of their duties.
A memorial for the deceased officer was held Aug. 24 in High River and was attended by over 700 police officers and emergency personnel, including members of Banff and Canmore bylaw services.
The solicitor general was also in attendance and indicated it was very difficult being present for what he felt was a “needless death.”
“The memorial was one of the most challenging days I’ve had in public office,” Denis said. “The community and the province have lost someone who was nothing short of a hero. You could tell there was sorrow throughout the entire community.”
Under section 19 of the Peace Officers Act, the government is required to conduct a review in the event of a fatality. The last review was done in 2005 and Denis indicated it would be made public once the accused is brought through the court system.
“I’m keeping a very open mind as to what the review might say,” the solicitor general said. “The review will be very comprehensive. We’ll look at everything: what could have prevented this case, if anything, and what we can do to ensure safety for our officers throughout the province.”
Keeping officers safe while on duty has been a priority for both Canmore and Banff bylaw services and this recent incident has created even more awareness among the two.
“We have some standard operating guidelines we follow,” said Banff bylaw supervisor Tony Clark. “When we’re doing camping patrols, for example, if it’s remote, you don’t do it alone.
“When we’re doing stationary checkstops for speeding we tend not to do those on our own,” he added. “There must be a second officer there, preferably more.”
Banff’s bylaw officers operate under Level 1 status, which permits them to carry batons and pepper spray, while Level 2 peace officers may only carry a baton, according to the police and procedures manual from the Public Security Peace Officer Program.
Lazenby was a Level 2 peace officer and reports indicate he was unarmed when investigating the disturbance. As Montgomery points out, having a firearm could have saved his life.
“Given that the officer had 35 years in the RCMP and was very well trained in the use of sidearms, I’m sure that if he’d been carrying a sidearm they would have both walked out of there,” Montgomery said.
But having a firearm is not necessarily crucial for handling situations as previous situations have indicated.
“In Canmore, we don’t really run into a lot of violent situations and our focus as enforcement officers is enforcement through education,” the supervisor explained. “We speak to people and when we do, we’re trying to get their compliance and co-operation.
“Arrest is not the first thing that comes to mind when we go meet somebody to discuss a problem,” he added. “We’re very rarely put in a situation where there would be a need to defend ourselves.”
Like its neighbours to the east, Banff bylaw officers also rarely encounter potential harmful situations, with much credit for that going to its partnership with the RCMP.
“Working in Banff, we have awesome support from our RCMP,” Clark said. “We can call them any time we think there’s any potential for a compromise of our safety and especially if the public’s safety is compromised.
“For our local bylaw office, considering the scope of our duties, I don’t think we need to carry firearms at this time.”
“I’m a servant of the community and if they decide they want me to carry firearms, I’ll carry them,” added Montgomery. “If they decide they do not want me to, I’ll make do with the tools I’m given.”
The RCMP’s investigation into the death of Lazenby is ongoing.
