Why Saskatoon police steered clear of mostly-maskless People's Party of Canada event
While they were aware that many attending the People's Party of Canada's national election night event in Saskatoon were ignoring the province's masking order, police chose a more hands-off approach.
The event attracted well over 200 supporters, the bulk of whom flouted the province's public health order requiring masks indoors to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Party Leader Maxime Bernier could be seen working his way through the crowd and posing for pictures at the event, held in a city that is currently the province's COVID-19 hotspot.
During the evening, Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) took to social media to say it was aware of the event and would be working with health inspectors to follow up.
However, no there were no obvious signs of police intervention the night of the gathering.
That's something SPS Deputy Chief of Police Randy Huisman said was deliberate due to the high-profile nature of the event.
"We just didn't want to make the event about what the Saskatoon police did, we didn't want to be the big story," Huisman told CTV News.
Huisman said there were concerns that the arrival of police and health inspectors at the event may have escalated the situation.
"Public health inspectors have been tasked with the enforcement of the order, but they would not be able to manage that themselves, there was just too many people and it's a public safety and officer safety consideration," Huisman said.
"I know some people felt like more enforcement action could have taken place, right then and there that evening, but those are some of the considerations we have to look at."
It's an approach SPS has consistently taken throughout the pandemic in how it's handled a series of "freedom" rallies held in the city by individuals critical of public health measures often flouting the rules they are protesting against.
"As we have done in over the summer with (the) demonstrations, we do post-rally or post-gathering investigation and we work collaboratively with public health inspectors and provide them with intelligence and help them identify individuals (who will be charged)," Huisman said.
According to Huisman, the investigation into the PCC election night celebration could take several weeks, requiring police to sift through "intelligence" and video.
"We've had a number of people contact us in providing us with names so once we verify and do positive identifications and consult further with the public health inspectors, then those tickets would be drafted and issued."
An individual found to be breaking a public health order can be fined up to $10,500 in Saskatchewan.
A penalty increased by the Saskatchewan government earlier this year, largely in response to events that openly violated COVID-19-related measures.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks beat Oilers 5-4 in comeback to take Game 1
The Vancouver Canucks won the first game of their NHL playoffs series with the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 on Wednesday night coming back from a three-goal deficit.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.