Police chief on Panda game response: ‘We need to do better’
Ottawa’s police chief is admitting his force dropped the ball in its handling of a giant street party near the University of Ottawa earlier this month.
“We need to do better, and we are going to do better,” Chief Peter Sloly told CTV Morning Live on Monday. “There will be a very different plan in place for next year.”
Sloly’s remarks on Monday were his first public comments about the Oct. 2 party, which happened after the annual Panda football game between uOttawa and Carleton.
About 2,000 partygoers took over a residential street in Sandy Hill, flipping a car and leaving a trail of garbage and debris. Seven people were injured. Police have charged eight people with mischief and two with taking part in a riot.
“We simply didn’t anticipate the types of challenges we were going to see, and we didn’t have enough resources in place for when the real challenges happened,” Sloly said. “That’s on me, that’s on us, and we’re going to do better.”
Sloly ordered an operational review of the entire incident, and he shared some of the early findings on Monday.
He said next year, police will start operations a week in advance of the Panda game. Officers will be deployed to the area over a 36-hour period, instead of this year’s 18-hour time frame, he said.
“We’ll be looking at doing inspections and interdictions in houses around that area that are problematic addresses before, during and after the Panda game,” he said, adding that will allow police to take “more immediate and sustained action” in response to criminal acts and breaches of municipal or provincial codes.
Sloly says the results of the operational review “should be made public.”
Police said last week their investigation into the party is finished and no more charges will be laid.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.