Edmonton police letter challenging Crown prosecutors under investigation

A letter sent last fall by Edmonton police urging Alberta Crown prosecutors to scrap a plea deal in the homicide of an Indigenous child is under investigation.

Alberta’s police watchdog has been directed by the Police Review Commission to investigate the Sept. 8, 2025, letter that was chastised at the time by criminal trial lawyers, who described it as extortion and vigilantism that jeopardized justice.

BACKGROUND: Edmonton police publicly challenging proposed plea deal from Crown prosecutors

In a statement to CityNews, Edmonton Police Service (EPS) said it would “cooperate fully” with the ASIRT investigation.

“We are committed to strengthening our relationship with the Crown and improving collaboration and accountability within the justice system,” the police service wrote.

In the letter, the EPS expressed “shock and horror” in learning the Crown agreed to accept a guilty plea for manslaughter from Ashley Rattlesnake, who was charged with murder in the blunt trauma death of eight-year-old Nina Napope Dumais.

Rattlesnake was charged after Nina’s body was found in a hockey bag in the back of a truck on the Samson Cree Nation in Maskwacis, south of Edmonton, in 2023.

Warren Driechel, who was the acting police chief at the time, argued a reduced sentence didn’t match the crime. He said police tried hard to get answers but didn’t hear back from prosecutors, calling the letter a “last resort.”

The letter, signed by Driechel, said a light sentence would be a travesty of justice and could prompt police to release details of the killing so the public can decide if justice has been served.

The move challenged the traditional firewall that separates police, who investigate a case, from prosecutors, who determine how best to proceed with the case in court.

The plea deal was not stopped, and Rattlesnake received an eight-year prison sentence on Feb. 27. The judge who sentenced her “identified potential misconduct associated with the letter,” according to the police watchdog.

“ASIRT’s role is to provide independent oversight when serious or sensitive questions arise about police conduct. This investigation will be conducted carefully, fairly and without predetermined conclusions,” said Matthew Block, ASIRT’s acting executive director, on Thursday.

ASIRT is a branch of the Police Review Commission (PRC).

“Our responsibility is to follow the evidence, assess the matter within our mandate and provide the public with confidence that the process is independent,” Block added.

The Edmonton Police Commission says it was advised of the Alberta’s Police Review Commission “level one” investigation on Monday.

“Under the Police Act, Level 1 matters include incidents involving serious injury or death, as well as serious or sensitive allegations involving police conduct,” Edmonton Police Commission Chair Ben Henderson said in a brief statement.

Court heard Nina had been living with Rattlesnake since September 2022.

The woman had been drinking alcohol and using methamphetamine the night Nina was found lying on the floor, bleeding next to a hole in the wall. Court was told Rattlesnake didn’t call 911 and instead asked acquaintances for help.

An autopsy showed Nina was chronically abused. She had previous, multiple broken bones and injuries. She also had sepsis because of an untreated infected broken tooth, which reduced her chances of surviving the head injury.

“Our thoughts remain with the Napope family, who we will support as they continue to mourn Nina’s loss,” Edmonton police told CityNews Thursday.

–With files from The Canadian Press