The Calgary Black Chambers extends our condolences to the family of Latjor Tuel, who was killed in an altercation with the Calgary Police Service on Saturday, February 19, 2022.

This is the latest in a series of disturbing incidents where a person has been killed or seriously injured by the Calgary Police Service. Disproportionately, these victims are Black, people of colour or people in mental distress. As is usually the case, the Chief of Police stated that the officers followed their protocols.  Similar statements were issued by the Calgary Police Service, when Godfred Addai-Nyamekye was assaulted in 2013 and Anthony Heffernan was killed in 2015 by police.

We believe that there is a fundamental issue with the protocols used by the police that continue to result in death and injury of our fellow citizens. These protocols must become responsive to the changing demographics of our province.

We are calling for a transparent, independent, public inquiry into the training and protocols followed by the police in Alberta, beyond the scope of the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team’s investigation. This is the only way to ensure that there is real, systemic change in how policing is conducted in our province.