A human rights group has made an agreement with the Edmonton Police Service and the City of Edmonton after spending yesterday in court deciding on whether not to shut down eight high-risk encampments.
The human rights group took EPS to court after hearing about the scale and timing of the encampment closures, which would have taken place just before Christmas. However, a judge has now granted an injunction to stop the closures temporarily.
The agreement that was reached allows police to move forward with their plans to clear the encampments, under a set of ten conditions. These conditions include:
- Before clearing the encampments, Edmonton Police Service will need to make sure there is sufficient shelter space or other indoor space
- If there’s not enough space, officers will close only if there’s a danger to public health and safety
- The City will consider the cold weather in decision making
- The City will advise agencies at earliest convenience about closure
- A Notice will be given again to residents including the reason and date
These conditions only apply to the eight encampments in question and do not impact the ongoing wellness checks by fire services and city staff.
Although this stops the encampments from being shut down, this order remains in effect until a hearing on January 11. Edmonton police have said that they plan to move forward on shutting down the encampments once possible.
