Statement on Public Order and Emergency Act Commission Report

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, February 17, 2023   4:40 pm

(Ottawa)—The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) wants to take this opportunity to formally thank Justice Rouleau for providing this comprehensive report. We welcome the opportunity to learn and improve our response to major events and protests.

We are carefully reviewing the documents to fully understand the recommendations and implications that are directed toward policing and will develop action plans where required.

The OPS acknowledges that we made a number of mistakes during this unprecedented event. We recognize the direct harms done to our residents and the downtown communities. 

Since that time, we have taken actions that have addressed many of the proposed recommendations in Justice Rouleau’s Report. For example, we have strengthened our intelligence-sharing processes, Police Liaison Team, our incident command structures and inter-agency collaboration. As well, we have improved our communication with the Ottawa Police Services Board, City Hall and our communities. These changes have been evident in the past year during a number of major events that included Rolling Thunder, Canada Day and this month’s Convoy events.

Justice Rouleau’s recommendations identify multiple legislative, policy and procedural changes.   We will need to properly assess these recommendations not only within the OPS but also with our policing partners across the country.  

The members of this Service never gave up on our community and worked with our partners to remove the unlawful protest. All Ottawa Police members work hard every day to serve and protect the community. We understand that trust in policing has been eroded in the past year.

We are fully committed to restoring that trust. 

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