Edmonton Police Tracked a Critic’s Social Media

It has been well documented that Edmonton criminal defence lawyer Tom Engel has been targeted by individual Edmonton police officers in the past because of his persistent public criticism of the police service.

Now Engel says his social media posts are being formally monitored by the Edmonton Police Service. And he believes the same is happening to posts and public comments of other police critics.

Through a Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy request, Engel obtained internal EPS documents that show Deputy Chief Kevin Brezinski, who is now Alberta’s ombudsman and public interest commissioner, ordered a special EPS unit to monitor Engel’s social media accounts after he released the names of officers who were involved in the shooting death of a civilian.

In March 2022, the EPS threat assessment unit conducted the monitoring even though Engel said he made no threat in his posts on Twitter, now X, and posed no threat to anyone.

Nor did he release any information about the officers other than their names.

The surveilling of his social media by the force “doesn't serve any legitimate policing duty or process,” Engel said in an interview. “It is a waste of taxpayers’ money.”

Patricia Misutka, the EPS executive director of corporate communications, acknowledged The Tyee’s request for comment from Chief Dale McFee but none was provided.

In 2005, also using an FOIP request, Engel learned his privacy had been breached by 10 different EPS officers who ran his name through police databases 16 times in a five-year period.

Engel said he was prompted to file this recent FOIP request for several reasons.

A confidential source had told him Edmonton police communications staff monitor social media for negative comments about the police, including by lawyers, journalists, politicians, academics and activists.

The same source told him his social media posts also had been previously monitored and analyzed, at the direction of McFee, by two detectives from the service’s professional standards branch. They were attempting to find whoever was leaking the confidential police information that he was posting on X.

In a series of posts on X on Feb. 29 this year, for example, Engel revealed the EPS had not been forthcoming with the Edmonton Police Commission about why an EPS helicopter, during a police chase, had landed at an accident scene, which is against protocol.

The police had said the pilot had landed because he thought he might save a passenger injured in the accident.

Engel disclosed that the pilot couldn’t land without authorization from the “criminal flight event supervisor,” who he said had not provided that authorization.

“No supervisor did,” Engel said in the post. “Air 1 is not equipped to handle any medical emergency, let alone this one.

“The real reason for the decision to land is that it was believed a police officer had been run over.”

Engel challenged the EPS communications department to correct anything in his post that was inaccurate. He heard nothing from them.

Target of threat assessment unit

Engel told The Tyee he knew from experience that the police service often uses EPS organizational security, which includes the threat assessment unit, to investigate those who make critical statements about EPS on social media, in the media or at protests.

Engel has asked the province’s FOIP commissioner to review his FOIP request because he said the EPS didn’t provide most of the information he had asked for, and instead provided information he had specifically not requested.

In the internal document, dated April 12, 2022, Det. Alex Thomas of the threat assessment unit tells a staff sergeant in investigative services that Brezinski ordered the monitoring of Engel, whom he refers to as an “anti-police advocate,” after he made two posts on March 15, 2022, that named officers involved in a shooting.

“There were no threats to harm the members or any personal information about them in the posts,” Thomas wrote.

“However subsequent posts by Engel involved a variety of ‘hot button’ or controversial topics, some of which include COVID-19 and vaccine mandates, Edmonton Oilers, RCMP and the provincial government.”

Thomas added that Engel’s Facebook “did not have any inflammatory statements about police.”

Nonetheless, Thomas said they would continue to monitor Engel’s social media accounts for two more weeks in case “anti-police supporters may encourage others to ‘dox’ the members involved.” They closed the file after finding nothing of note.

‘I’m pro good policing’: Engel

Engel took issue with Thomas referring to him as an “anti-police advocate.”

“I'm the opposite,” he said. “I have been invited to participate in the Alberta government's review of the Police Act and the Police Service Regulation. They know that I'm not anti-police. They know that I'm pro good policing.”

But, he said, “this is the sort of reputation that has been assigned to me, including by McFee,” and it reveals the mindset that has “infected” the police service.

“There is a certain police mentality or culture that can't tolerate constructive criticism, or any kind of criticism.” That culture, he said, has become rooted in the EPS under McFee.

Engel said he laughed when he read the section of the report that referenced his “hot button” social media posts about COVID-19, vaccine mandates and the Oilers.

“What has that got to do with the Edmonton Police Service?” he said. “That is just ridiculous. I was surprised that they would actually write that down.”

Criminologist Dan Jones is the chair of justice studies at Edmonton’s NorQuest College and is a former 25-year EPS member.

Jones said he has heard rumours about the EPS monitoring of critics but has no first-hand knowledge of it. He said he has never seen a similar monitoring initiative in another police service.

The Tyee provided Jones with the internal EPS documents obtained by Engel.

“That makes no sense to me,” he said, adding later that the threat assessment, and monitoring of Engel’s social media posts, “is very odd.”

“It is not like Tom Engel is out there threatening police officers or threatening lives.”

Jones said he has met Engel. “I don't think Tom is anti-police. In fact, I think the opposite. I think he is a believer in police reform, and he is a believer that police need to be held accountable.”

And, “in a lot of cases, he is not wrong.”

‘Police should be able to be criticized’: criminologist

Jones cited the disturbing case of Pacey Dumas, the young Cree man who was kicked so hard in the head by an EPS officer that he was left with life-altering injuries.

On behalf of the Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association, Engel had called for the police officer to be criminally charged.

But the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service declined despite a recommendation from the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team. ASIRT found the officer displayed a "shocking lack of judgment and disregard" for the teen's life.

The Crown subsequently blocked an attempt by Dumas to privately prosecute the officer.

Labelling Engel as “anti-police” belies the “us-versus-them mentality” harboured by some in the EPS, Jones said.

“If you don't agree with us, then you are against us.”

“Police should be able to be criticized, and they should be able to take responsibility for their actions,” he said.

Earlier this year, the Edmonton Police Commission rejected a request from Edmonton city council to give councillors access to an audit plan that would outline which parts of the EPS are being audited, in order to provide some insight into policing priorities.

Commission chair John McDougall told Global News the commission exists to separate political decision-making from police governance.

But Jones said the issue of monitoring of private citizens is one reason council should have access to audit information.

“I don't think the council is interfering with police operations,” Jones said. “They just want to know where the money is being spent.

“I have heard rumours about monitoring, and you have heard from sources about it,” he said.

“If money is being spent on those things, I think that is when the city council should get to ask, ‘What are our tax dollars being used for?’ because as taxpayers, we should know.”

If you have any information for this story, or information for another story, please contact Charles Rusnell in confidence via email.