At least five people were killed by police in Canada in August 2025. This means that at least 64 people have been killed by cops so far this year.

At least 11 people were killed in police actions in Canada in July 2025. At least six people were killed in June and seven in May. At least eight people were killed in April 2025 and six people were killed in March 2025. A dozen people were killed by police in February, the deadliest month of Canadian police violence since August 2024, when 13 people were killed. In January 2025, at least nine people were killed by police. These deaths include people who were directly killed by police, as in police shootings, and people who died during police deployments or in police custody.

In 2024, at least 100 people were killed in police actions. There were at least 97 police-involved deaths in Canada in 2023, while in 2022 there were at least 117 police-involved deaths.

Three of the victims in August were shot and killed by police. One person died in police custody and one person was killed in a police chase. One victim was reported publicly to have been in crisis at the time of the police deployment.

The details below are based on police reports, reports from oversight agencies, and in some cases information from families. As always, because there are no formal, systemic mechanisms for documenting and reporting police killings publicly in Canada, all numbers presented for police-involved deaths represent an undercount. In addition to the known cases, there are instances of police-involved deaths that have no reporting.

August 3-4. Miramichi Police. Custody.

A man died in Miramichi Police Force (MPF) custody after being arrested on August 3. The Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT) reports that on the man was arrested for theft and mischief at a local restaurant on the evening of August 3. He was transported to the Miramichi Police Station and detained in a cell. The following morning, officers attended his cell to release him, and he was found unresponsive. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) attended the cell and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

August 8. Saskatchewan RCMP. Shooting.

Saskatchewan RCMP shot and killed a 19-year-old man in Deschambault Lake on the morning of August 8. Few details have been released but police claim that at 8:41 AM, two Deschambault Lake RCMP officers “came across” five people hanging out in a wooded area near the community. There had allegedly been reports of a gun fired in the area. At some point, two officers fired several rounds from their pistols, striking the youth who was from Deschambault Lake. He died at the scene. Police claim the youth pointed a gun at officers. Neither officer was injured. Four people were arrested at the scene and two were quickly released without charge.

The general investigation section of the Prince Albert RCMP detachment is looking into the initial call for service to Deschambault Lake RCMP. An increased police presence was reported near Oskatuc Avenue in Deschambault Lake and people were told to avoid areas where police were, before Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) members were present.

Deschambault Lake is located about 340 kilometers northeast of Prince Albert.

August 12. Ontario Provincial Police. Shooting.

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) shot and killed a 22-year-old man in Turkey Point in Norfolk County on the afternoon of August 12. It is reported that at around 1:00 PM, OPP officers were on the water near Turkey Point Marina when a personal watercraft “got their attention.” Police allegedly tried to get the operator to stop and he entered the MacDonald Turkey Point Marina and ran into some bushes next to the marina at around 2:00 PM. A perimeter was set up. Emergency response team officers and the canine unit located the person. One officer fired an Anti-Riot Weapon ENField and another officer discharged his firearm. According to the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the 22-year-old man appears to have been struck by both weapons. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

No other details about the victim or the police deployment have been released. Police have not confirmed what about the boater initially got their attention, but witnesses have claimed the young man was on a jet ski travelling at high speeds. Witnesses have also said that four police boats and a Coast Guard boat were chasing him when he entered the marina area.

August 19. Vancouver Police Department. Shooting.

A Vancouver Police Department (VPD) officer shot and killed a man in the Joyce-Collingwood neighborhood on the afternoon of August 19. Few details have been released so far, but police have stated that the man they killed was Asian and in his late forties.

It is reported that VPD responded to a 911 call regarding a dispute between two neighbours at a residential building near Rupert Street and Vanness Avenue around 4 PM. One man was shot by police and died at the scene. Police claim the man had a weapon. They also say that the other person involved suffered unspecified, non-life-threatening injuries.

One witness, a neighbour, has since described a hectic scene that escalated quickly upon police arrival. This neighbour described the situation to media: “When the cops showed up, maybe like five minutes after they went into the building, and then, like, after maybe about 20 seconds, I heard, like, five or six gunshots go off.” 

August 26. Lévis Police Department and Sûreté du Québec. Police Chase.

A man in crisis was killed in a police chase on Route 281 in Saint-Michel-de-Bellechasse, Quebec, on August 26. It is reported that the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) was called to assist the Lévis Police Department in locating a man in crisis. The man was spotted in a vehicle in the Saint-Michel-de-Bellechasse area by an SQ patrol officer around 1:25 PM on Route 281. A police pursuit was initiated and around a minute later the vehicle left the road, rolling several times into a ditch by the 281, between Route 20 and Route 132. The driver of the vehicle suffered serious injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. Several witnesses reported seeing numerous police vehicles involved.

Five Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes (BEI) investigators have been assigned to investigate the death. The BEI is not an independent agency and relies on other police forces for its investigations. In this case, the Quebec City Police Department will be involved in the investigation.

Jeff Shantz is a long-time anti-authoritarian organizer, researcher, and writer who lives and works on Kwantlen, Katzie, and Semiahmoo territories (Surrey, British Columbia).

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