Law enforcement in Canada is the responsibility of police services, special constabularies, and civil law enforcement agencies, which are operated by every level of government, some private and Crown corporations, and First Nations. Canada's provinces are responsible for the development and maintenance of police forces and special constabularies,[1] while civil law enforcement is the responsibility of the level or agency of government that developed those laws, and civil law enforcement agencies may be given a range of powers to enforce those laws.[2] As such, the exact duties and authority of individual law enforcement agencies vary significantly.
Police services may take on additional duties such as municipal by-law enforcement,[3][4] and police services range in size from small, one-officer forces that are generally limited to enforcing provincial and municipal legislation to large organizations charged with investigating complex financial crimes.[5][6]InOntario, police services are obliged to provide at least five core police services — crime prevention, law enforcement, maintenance of the public peace, emergency response, and assistance to victims of crime — to fulfill the province's requirement for "adequate and effective policing,"[7] while in neighbouring Quebec, the responsibilities of a police force are dependent on the population it serves.[8] Other jurisdictions, such as Manitoba and British Columbia, do not define adequate and effective policing, although individual regulations in both of those provinces set out basic responsibilities of police forces.[9]
Although special constabularies exist in some form in almost every province, they are referred to by a number of different titles and carry different levels of authority between provinces and agencies. The Niagara Parks Police Service, for example, employs armed officers responsible for providing almost all police services on and in relation to lands owned by the Niagara Parks Commission;[10] while the University of Saskatchewan Protective Services Division's unarmed officers are limited to enforcing University by-laws, some provincial laws, and limited sections of the Criminal Code.[11] The exact definition of a special constabulary also varies province-to-province, and some civil law enforcement agencies, usually those whose staff are designated as special constables, are also sometimes considered special constabularies.[12] Generally, a special constabulary is any law enforcement organization composed of special constables, peace officers, or safety officers (as opposed to police officers) with a mandate for criminal law enforcement and/or general peacekeeping and security.
The powers of civil law enforcement agencies also vary significantly. Some, like the Saskatchewan Highway Patrol, have the authority to enforce criminal legislation in addition to their primary mandate to enforce civil legislation,[13] while others are limited to enforcing only a handful of by-laws or provincial acts. Regardless of the breadth of their legislative authority, all civil law enforcement officers in Canada are considered peace officers for the purposes of carrying out their duties,[14][15][16] and may be variously appointed as special constables,[12] municipal law enforcement officers,[17] provincial offences officers,[18] or generically as peace officers.[19]
For the purposes of this list, agencies are grouped by their primary responsibilities and legislative definitions.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Horseback in front of Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica (Ottawa)A Canadian Forces Military Police Chevrolet Milverado drives through Toronto.
The federal government, under the Railway Safety Act, authorizes any railway in Canada to request that a superior court judge appoint railway employees as police officers.[23] These officers are hired, trained, and employed by the railway for the purposes of preventing crimes against the company and the protection of goods, materials, and public rail transit being moved through the railway network, and have nationwide jurisdiction within 500 metres of a railway line or as it relates to railway operations.[24] There are three such federally-authorized police forces in the country:
In British Columbia, the Solicitor General may establish a "designated policing unit" to provide specialized police services in a geographic area alongside the police service(s) of jurisdiction.[38] These forces answer to a board composed of representatives selected directly by the Solicitor General, and may include community representatives, representatives from area police services, or representatives from the corporations funding the designated policing unit's operations.[38][39] There are three such units in the province:
Manitoba First Nation Police Services - MFNPS (Formally: Dakota Ojibway Police Services - DOPS) serves the following areas:
- Long Plain First Nation, Sandy Bay First Nation, Swan Lake First Nation, Birdtail Sioux First Nation, Canupawakpa Dakota Nation, Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation, Waywayseecappo First Nation and Opaskwayak Cree Nation.
• Akwasasne Mohawk Police
• Anishinabek Police Service
• Lac-Seul Police Service
• Nishnawbe-Aski Police
• Rama Police Service
• Six Nations Police Service
• Treaty Three Police Service
• U.C.C.M Anishnaabe Police Service
• Wikwemikong Police Service
The OPP administers OFNPA funding and provides administrative support for First Nations whose choice of policing arrangement under the federal First Nations Policing Program takes one of two forms: an OPP-administered OFNPA option; or OPP policing under a Stream Two Agreement.
• Atikameksheng Anishnawbek (White Fish Lake) Police
• Batchewana First Nations Police
• Bear Island Police
• Neyaashiinigmiing Police; formerly Cape Croker Police
• Chippewas of the Thames First Nation Police
• Georgina Island Police
• Hiawatha First Nation Police
• K.I Police ( Big Trout Lake)
• Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek Police (Gull Bay)
• Lake Helen Reserve Red Rock Band Police
• Mississauga First Nation Police
• Moravian Reserve Police
• Munsee-Delaware Police
• Oneida Police
• Pikangikum Police
• Tyendinaga Police
• Walpole Island First Nations Police
• Services de police Wôlinak et d’Odanak
• Services de police Timiskaming
• Kahnawake Peacekeepers
• Services de police Naskapis
• Services de police Gesgapegiag
• Services de police Eagle Village
• Services de police Kitigan Zibi
• Service de police Kebaowek
• Services de police Listuguj
• Services de police Essipit
• Services de police Eeyou Eenou
• Service de police Nunavik
• Sécurité publique d' Opitciwan
• Sécurité publique d' Uashat Mak Mani-Utenam
• Sécurité publique d' Pessamit
• Sécurité publique d' Wemotaci
• Sécurité publique d' Mashteuiatsh
• Sécurité publique d' Pakua Shipi
• Service de police de Manawan
• Service de police de Pikogan
• Service de police Lac-Simon
In various television and film media, producers may decide to utilise fictitious law enforcement agencies for the purpose of artistic license or copyright reasons.
Immigration and Customs Security (Sécurité de l'immigration et des douanes) - the federal agency that is the main focus of the CBC television series The Border. Created to deal with trans-border matters including terrorism and smuggling, it operates under the supervision of Public Safety Canada. Throughout the series the agency liaises with both the Department of Homeland Security and MI6.
Royal Canadian Federal Police, RCFP (Gendarmerie Royale Fédérale du Canada, GRFC) - national police service Sky Atlantic series Tin Star. Officers wear tan pants with a blue stripe, dark blue shirts with the service patch on either shoulder and black bulletproof vests with POLICE emblazoned on the front. It is a fictional version of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Canada Border Patrol, CBP (Patrouille Frontalière Canadienne, PFC) - national border services agency featured in the Sky Atlantic series Tin Star. It is a fictional version of, and has similar uniforms to the Canada Border Services Agency.
Canadian Federal Police Corps (Corps de la police Fédérale Canadianne), CFPC - national police force in the CBC Series Allegiance (2024) is a fictional version of the RCMP.
Securite du Quebec - the provincial police service mentioned in the Radio-Canada and Bravo series 19-2. It is a fictional version of the Sûreté du Québec.
Sûreté Nationale du Québec - the provincial police service in the 1996 Radio-Canada TV series Omerta. It is a fictional version of the Sûreté du Québec.
Algonquin Bay Police Department - police service in the CTV-Super Écran crime drama Cardinal, with jurisdiction in the fictional city of Algonquin Bay, Ontario.
Little Big Bear Police Service - police service in the Sky Atlantic series Tin Star, covering the fictional town of Little Big Bear, Alberta.
Metropolitan Law Enforcement - police service in the Global series Rookie Blue. The former is printed on the police force logo, however it is often referred to as the "Metropolitan Police" in show. The show is set in Toronto, but does not make overt references to the city until later seasons. The real life counterpart would be the Toronto Police Service.
Regional Police - regional police service in the Showcase TV series Trailer Park Boys. The service is shown to have a Parking Enforcement Division additionally. It is a fictional/generic version of the Halifax Regional Police.
Reverie Ipowahtaman Police Service - aboriginal police service in the Sky Atlantic series Tin Star. It covers the fictional Ipowahtaman First Nations reserve in Reverie, northern Alberta.
St John's Police Department - police service in the CITY TV series Hudson and Rex. The actual St John's police department is the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.
Service de Police de Grande Ourse (Great Bear Police Service) - the local police service in the 2004 Radio-Canada TV series Grande Ourse. It covers the fictional mining town of Grande Ourse (Great Bear) in northern Quebec.
Service de Police Métropolitain (Metropolitan Police Service) - police service used in the 1998 Radio-Canada TV series Caserne 24, the 2011 Radio-Canada and 2014 Bravo-CTV series 19-2. In Caserne 24 it is the generic police service for the unnamed city the show is set in. In both versions of 19-2 it is a fictitious, generic version of the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal, with the uniforms and police vehicles bearing strong resemblance to the real Montreal.
Municipal Police Service - the police service covering Dog River, Saskatchewan, the fictional town in the CTV series Corner Gas. Generally just a two person police force, who do mostly Traffic Work. The Police Agency that would actually patrol the area would be the Royal Canadian Mounted Police .
