No end in sight to Ottawa protests, not enough resources, says police chief

Ottawa's chief of police says he doesnot have enough resources to end the turbulent protests launched in the nation's capital more than a week ago nor can he say when they mightcome to an end.

"We need an additional surge of resources," Chief Peter Slolysaid Saturday, even though every available Ottawa Police Service (OPS) officeris on active duty and hundreds of other law-enforcement officials have come to help.

More than 7,000 demonstrators came into the downtown Saturday, according to police,and 500 heavy trucks still remain in the so-called "red zone."

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Slolymade the statement ata rare emergency meeting of the Ottawa Police Services board, one hastily called for late afternoon and which lasted more than two hours.

Coun. Diane Deans, who chairs the board, did not mince words about how she perceives the demonstrations that have taken over the core of the city.

"This group is emboldened by the lack of enforcement by every level of government," said Deans, at one point referring to them as "terrorists."

"They are terrorizing our residents, torturing them with incessant honking, threatening them and preventing them from leading their lives. People cannot go to work or open their businesses. They cannot sleep, walk, shop, go to medical appointments or enjoy their neighbourhood," she said.

"This group is a threat to our democracy. What we're seeing is bigger than just a city of Ottawa problem. This is a nationwide insurrection. This is madness."

Police flooded with complaints

Complaints to police about everything from noise and trafficto threats and assaultshave been flooding the reporting channels, to the point some people give up trying.

More than 400 calls have come in sincethe demonstration began, and police have launched50 criminal investigations, including 11 related to hate crimes.

Four people have been charged in relation to those hate-crime investigations, bringing the total number of charges to seven.

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They've even issued 70 traffic violations, for infractions like driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

Board members pressed upon Slolymany of the questions on the public's mind: Why aren't laws and bylaws being enforced? When will arrests be made? Why isa shack illegallybuiltat Confederation Park not taken down yet? Why is the city-owned parking lot at the baseball stadium being used as a base camp for the protest?

"What's going to be done here?" demanded a furious Coun. Carol Anne Meehan, who sits on the board. "We're giving a signal to everyone coming into town that it's a free-for-all."

'This can't continue': Ottawa city councillor pushes police to find way to end protests

3 years ago

Duration 3:11

During an emergency meeting of the Ottawa Police Services Board, Coun. Carol Anne Meehan expressed frustration with Ottawa police over their response to week-long protests that have pushed local residents to the breaking point.

Not a reasonable crowd, says deputy

Both the police and the National Capital Commission have been criticized for not removing the hastily erectedwooden shack on the NCC-controlled park.

But acting Deputy Chief TrishFerguson said both laws and judgment have to be considered, as police believe that situation could become dangerous quickly.

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In the case of the shack, police had to get permission from the NCC, which owns the property, to remove the structure. That took a littletime, but then there was a claim by some protesters that it was part of an Indigenous demonstration. So police then had toconsultwith local Indigenous leaders to determine if that claim was valid.

Apparently it was not, but even so, Ferguson saidpolice have to assesswhether anyonemight getinjured if officersmove in, even if they are legally in the right.

"I know everybody is looking to Confederation Park saying, 'Why don't you just go in there with bulldozers and take it down?' There were children [there], there were women," she told the board.

As for board members' suggestions that protestors be ticketed for all theinfractions they're committing idling, parking, violating noise bylaws Ferguson said she's not sure what good it would do.

"If we're dealing with reasonable people, then it is a deterrent," she said. "But this is not the crowd that we're dealing with."

Mistakes were made, admits chief

Police have now conceded they were not expecting protesters to stay this long.

Deputy Chief Steve Bell said the intelligence coming in fromsecurity partners across the country when the convoys first set off was that they would stay a short time and leave just like every other protest that has come to Ottawa.

According to CBC sources, the seven or eight convoy leadersin contact with police indicatedmost of the trucks wouldroll out last Sunday. That clearly didn't happen.

"This is an unprecedented situation, but we have learned from our experience and yes, our mistakes, and we're committed to doing better," said Sloly.

The chief did not elaborate on precisely what those mistakes were, but it may have includedoffering to hand over the parking lot of the baseball stadium to the demonstrators more than a week ago.

The idea at the time was to get the trucks out of the downtown.

But demonstrators soon organized themselves into a semi-permanent camp at the Coventry Road lot, where huge donations of food and fuel are distributed to protesters, some of whom sleep in their trucks.

Many of them eat together in large white tents. They have bonfires at night. They've even installed three working saunas.

Now, police are worried about how to movethe protesters, literally invited there by city officials, without a dangerous conflict.

All resources on the streets, curfew suggested

The board heard that virtually every one of the 500available OPS officersis working 12-and-14-hour shifts, with any booked time off cancelled. Sloly said some haven't had a day off in almost two weeks, a situation that cannot continue indefinitely, even though the protest does.

Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Tom Carriquehas helped "There's nothing we have asked for that he hasn't given and he's offered even more today," said the chief as has RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki.

The federal police force has been working with theOPSsince the demonstration began, withanother257 RCMP officersjoining the local ranks to help withdemonstration enforcement as of Saturday.

Police say they need more help with everything, from investigating complaints to following the digital tracks of organizers to finding enough tow trucks.

"We need tow trucks. We need heavy tow trucks. There are not enough in this in the city, not the availability through private sector.That will be a significant issue should we start to try to challenge the full breadth of what's going on with horn blowing," Sloly said.

"Ultimately, we're going to have to potentially seize and impound vehicles ... That's another significant resource we need very quickly."

The board asked the chief to deliver a list "as soon as possible" of additional resources that he might need. Deans even floated the idea of asking the province to impose a curfew.