‘No one is above the law’: ASIRT defends investigative procedures

WATCH ABOVE: There have been three police shootings in Alberta in just a week and a half. The officers involved are being investigated, but critics say those asking the questions are biased. Kendra Slugoski reports. 

EDMONTON – The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is reassuring Albertans its investigators are professional and impartial amid an increase in recent police shootings.

“We are concerned with the truth, we are concerned with accuracy, and we are concerned that everyone gets fair treatment in this province. No one is above the law,” says Susan Hughson, ASIRT Executive Director.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We are concerned with the truth, we are concerned with accuracy, and we are concerned that everyone gets fair treatment in this province. No one is above the law," says Susan Hughson, ASIRT Executive Director.

During the past two weeks, two police shootings happened in Calgary, while a third occurred in Wetaskiwin.

READ MORE: Man killed by police in Calgary Super 8 suffered from drug addiction: family

During the Wetaskiwin incident, a man in his 40s was shot after RCMP responded to a domestic call. The man remains in stable condition, ASIRT says.

ASIRT has received criticism from a person who was affected in one of the Calgary incidents, but Hughson says it’s not the reason she’s defending the organization.

“I am not responding directly to one person. I want to convey to Albertans how ASIRT works, so that they can have faith and confidence in the way we conduct our investigations.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I am not responding directly to one person. I want to convey to Albertans how ASIRT works, so that they can have faith and confidence in the way we conduct our investigations."

WATCH: Questions being raised over ASIRT impartiality

ASIRT calls the number of police shootings since 2014 “unusual”, but asserts investigators are covering off what needs to be done.

Last year, there were 53 cases, and so far this year, ASIRT has been involved in 25 investigations.

ASIRT investigators are former police officers. Civilian investigators are typically not hired because the organization says those individuals take too long to train and don’t have the investigative expertise.

“We’re not going to compromise the quality of an investigation for the appearance of independence,” says Hughson.

“It seems to make common sense that if you have a loved one that is injured in an incident with police, you want the best investigators possible investigating that incident.”

Susan Hughson is a former crown prosecutor.