Overhaul police training to reduce police shootings — and look to Norway for answers: expert

Two recent fatal police shootings in Manitoba are prompting renewed calls to lengthen and modernize police education in Canada — and one expert says we should look to Nordic countries for ways to do that.

Elgyn Muskego, 17, was shot and killed by RCMP on Norway House Cree Nation on Nov. 22. Two days later, Jordan Charlie, 24, was shot and killed by Winnipeg police.

Police say both Charlie and Muskego were holding edged weapons when they were shot. Manitoba's police watchdog, the Independent Investigation Unit, is investigating both cases.

University of Alberta criminology professor Temitope Oriola acknowledges de-escalation techniques have become more prominent, but argues the long-standing emphasis on marksmanship in police training, and the comparatively short training period, are problematic.

"When all you have is a hammer, somehow everything looks like a nail," said Oriola.

He echoes a call made last year to overhaul police training in Canada by the inquiry that investigated the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia, which left 22 dead.

The inquiry's final report said the RCMP's model of training was inadequate to prepare officers "for the complex demands of contemporary policing."

It suggested all of Canada's police forces look to Finland, which requires a three-year degree for police officers.

That approach "has achieved remarkable success in two key indicators: public trust and capacity to avoid the use of lethal force," the report said.

With the Winnipeg Police Service, people at least 18 years old with a Grade 12 education can become constables after 36 weeks of training, which includes academics and field work with firearms, as well as use-of-force training.

RCMP recruits have to meet similar requirements and undergo a 26-week cadet basic training course, followed by a six-month field coaching program.

"[Peace officers] are enabled by law to use force, including lethal force," Oriola said.

"Is this a reasonable timeline to train people who are imbued with power, firepower that is second only to the Armed Forces?"

He argues it isn't. Some barber and hairstyling programs demand longer training, he quipped.