In a recent year-end report, the Kingston Police Service Board has announced a significant decrease in use-of-force incidents reported by local police for the year 2025. Officers recorded 66 use-of-force reports related to 63 distinct incidents, which is a reduction from 82 reports covering 73 incidents in 2024. This trend reflects an ongoing commitment to reducing the use of force and suggests that police practices may be evolving positively in response to community concerns about policing methods.

The report highlights specific data about the situations where force was used, with officers aiming their firearms 44 times in 2025, a decrease from 53 times the previous year. Notably, firearms were only discharged once within the year, and this was done to humanely dispatch an injured animal. The use of conducted energy weapons (CEWs), also known as tasers, demonstrates similar patterns with 10 displays and nine deployments, indicating a calculated approach to potentially volatile encounters. The effectiveness of these tools is also addressed, with researchers noting that six out of the nine taser deployments were effective.

Warrant executions were identified as the most frequent scenarios necessitating the use of force, with such cases accounting for 32 of the use-of-force reports. Meanwhile, incidents involving weapons calls made up an additional 16 reports. This data may compel further discussions on the factors driving police interventions and the implementation of alternative measures that could reduce the necessity for force, as well as overall community safety protocols.