CTV Ottawa has learned the president of the Ottawa Police Association sent his members an email Wednesday, blasting Ottawa police management for what he calls unjustly attacks on the reputations of its officers.
The letter, obtained by CTV Ottawa, goes on to allege the police chief was notified of problems in the cellblock more than one year ago and failed to offer more training to officers.
"As an organization, we have supported and indeed asked for additional training and resources for our members. In fact, as far back as a year ago, a letter was presented to the chief concerning these very issues and recommending that cellblock personnel be provided additional training specific to their duties," Steve Boucher said in the email.
"This reasonable request has gone unanswered. It is extremely regrettable that it took a public relations crisis for our leadership to act."
Ottawa's acting police chief acknowledged Tuesday that the force has a problem when it comes to the treatment of prisoners in cellblocks.
Gilles Larochelle has also requested the Ontario Provincial Police to investigate two cellblock incidents involving Ottawa police officers. He said the incidents are currently before the courts and they involve both sworn and civilian officers, including at least one special constable.
The two cellblock incidents are in addition to two videos recently released by the courts showing Ottawa police using excessive force on prisoners.
While the police union welcomes the investigation by a third party, it says it's disappointed with how the leadership of the Ottawa Police Service is handling abuse allegations against its officers.
"Our profound disappointment with the leadership of the Ottawa Police Service is not about the specifics of the cases before the courts. We are angered by the way conclusions have been drawn, before our members have had the opportunity to explain their actions," Boucher said in the email.
He adds that he hopes the association's support of its membership is not misconstrued as a "failure to appreciate the seriousness of the situation."
"We believe whole-heartedly it would be wrong to judge anyone until they've had the opportunity to articulate the reasons for their actions," he said.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said Wednesday the decision to call in the OPP to investigate cellblock incidents is the right approach.
"Hopefully this will clear the air; allow the Ottawa Police Service to determine what needs to be done on a go-forward basis," Watson said.
"We've seen a number of videos that are disturbing to myself, personally, and the whole city. We want to get to the bottom of this; we want to make sure these kinds of incidents aren't occurring on a go-forward basis."
The police chief ordered a review of cellblock incidents last week in response to public outrage over surveillance video showing Stacy Bonds' treatment by Ottawa police. A judge ruled her treatment in custody was an "indignity to a human being."
A second video released by the courts last week shows a homeless man being dragged into a cell and kicked.
Larochelle said Tuesday that the force is now introducing measures to enhance the training of cellblock staff. Those measures include the addition of audio equipment in cellblocks and appropriate use-of-force training for all special constables.
