Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT)

Purpose

Created under the Police Act, ASIRT investigates Alberta police officers whose conduct:

• may have caused serious injuries
• may have caused death
• has led to serious or sensitive allegations of police misconduct, such as:
  • breach of trust
  • obstruction of justice
  • sexual assault
  • perjury
  • theft
  • fraud

Investigative role

The province's director of law enforcement assigns ASIRT its files. ASIRT may be directed to:

• conduct an investigation
• take over an ongoing investigation
• review the investigation of a police agency
• oversee and provide direction on an investigation being conducted by a police agency

Criminal charges

ASIRT's executive director decides – after consulting the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service – whether a police officer should be criminally charged.

Executive director's message

I am committed to, and believe in, justice and accountability. As Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Everyone is entitled to justice and no one is above the law. In the words of Malcolm X, "I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against."

ASIRT's vision – to enhance public confidence and ensure accountability in the investigation of serious or sensitive incidents involving Alberta's police – can only be achieved through the continued pursuit of investigative excellence, and the principled maintenance of ASIRT's integrity, objectivity and independence.

– Sue Hughson, QC