Prince Albert police partner with Sask. Marshals to install biometric health sensors in cells

Aishwarya Dudha · CBC News

· Posted: May 15, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

The Prince Albert Police Service volition install health monitoring exertion successful immoderate of its detention cells to alert unit if idiosyncratic goes into aesculapian distress.

Devices volition beryllium mounted connected the ceiling cells and use radar to show bosom rate, elevated temperature and respiratory concerns of idiosyncratic wrong the cell.

"We're proceeding from our spouse agencies and Estevan and Regina, who person implemented the bundle and person already reported backmost that it saved lives," Patrick Nogier, Prince Albert's constabulary chief, said successful an interrogation Tuesday.  

The exertion is to beryllium installed successful 12 of the 30 jailhouse cells astatine the Prince Albert constabulary presumption by the extremity of the year. Nogier said that it volition help both the detainees and the officers.

He said the strategy activates lone erstwhile the compartment is occupied and alerts officers if idiosyncratic is going into aesculapian distress. It's attached to the ceiling and does not touch the inmate. 

The constabulary main said the sensors tin drawback aesculapian emergencies that could different spell unnoticed, similar an overdose, oregon erstwhile someone has hidden drugs wrong their assemblage and it goes wrong.

"We've had circumstances wherever radical are trying to fell it with hopes of recovering it astatine a aboriginal date, and the packaging breaks and past causes terrible aesculapian implications," helium said. 

Nogier said aboriginal involution helps officers marque amended decisions and supply the idiosyncratic with aesculapian attraction if needed. 

The outgo to instal the exertion successful the 12 cells is $45,000 to $50,000, to beryllium provided by the Saskatchewan Marshals Service (SMS). Prince Albert constabulary volition screen the yearly subscription outgo of astir $14,000 to $16,000. 

SMS is sharing the outgo successful instrumentality for utilizing the city's jailhouse cells for arrests they marque successful the area. 

"[Prince Albert police] wouldn't beryllium billing america backmost present if we usage their facilities. So it's benignant of a break-even constituent for us, and it would beryllium a payment for clients that are successful custody to marque definite that they're successful a safer location," Richard Lowen, lawman main of enforcement for the Saskatchewan Marshals Service, said successful an interrogation Wednesday. 

Lowen was moving with the Estevan Police Service erstwhile the aforesaid exertion was installed there. 

"We've seen it. It's demonstrated that it's already saved lives, truthful we knew it's a bully system," helium said. 

In 2021, 3 radical died successful Prince Albert Police Service custody wrong 30 days. 

Coroner's inquests into those deaths laid retired a fewer recommendations, including installing infra-red information cameras, doing afloat searches of cells, doing a urinalysis successful 24 hours, assessing fume detectors, and making definite aesculapian bags are decently stocked and visible.

Lowen said that the biometrics monitoring strategy goes further. 

"It's amended than quality intervention. It's amended than an infrared strategy oregon a fume detector," helium said. "So this strategy is going to beryllium supra and beyond immoderate recommendations that were made."

WATCH | Prince Albert Police Service installs wellness monitoring exertion successful cells: 

Concerns astir 'surveillance creep'

Scott Thompson, a sociology assistant prof astatine University of Saskatchewan, said that whenever caller technologies that person capableness to stitchery information are implemented, it raises privateness concerns.

"The interest is ever astir thing called 'surveillance creep.' That is, we enactment thing successful spot for 1 intent that we mightiness deliberation is good, and past abruptly arsenic the information is collected, radical are looking into it and saying, 'hey, we tin bash these further things,'" Thompson said successful an interview.

"This is AI, this is large data, this is institutions wanting to stitchery arsenic overmuch information arsenic they tin successful bid to lick problems, I deliberation we tin applaud the constabulary work for taking this benignant of grounds led solution.… But arsenic the wide public, however bash we guarantee that this doesn't go a instrumentality of oppression and harm?" 

Lowen said information from the devices volition beryllium stored successful the unreality done the institution liable for the installation, GT Global Services Inc. He said the system only logs bosom rate, breathing and movement, but it does allows constabulary to adhd much information.

Chief Nogier said helium doesn't cognize yet if constabulary volition beryllium adding much accusation to the records.