My spouse got in touch with two police departments and both of them wouldn't give her a police certificate without taking her fingerprints. My spouse has no criminal record so I'm not sure what to do. Does it make a differnce if she has her fingerprints taken? Or should I go to another police dept?

That is odd. In Toronto there are two types of certificates. One for immigration and general purposes
and one for people who work with children and vulnerable members of society. You only need fingerprints for the latter. I would try another police department.

Has she tried one of the nearby RCMP detachments in her area? That will also suffice for a police certificate, as it's Canada wide.

C.'s from outside of Edmonton and he received his certificate from the RCMP office in Stony Plain.

Yes, make sure you go to the RCMP and request the "Visa" Criminal Record check. This is the only one they will return to you. I would go to this link and print the page, highlight the information about Canada and show them, if they will not do the check for you.

http://www.immihelp.com/immigration/police-certificates.html

Thank you that's exactly what I'm going to have her do.