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Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly to testify at Emergencies Act inquiry

Oct. 28, 2022, Ottawa, Ont. – Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly will testify today at the public inquiry into the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act to clear “Freedom Convoy” protesters.

Sloly resigned the day after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the legislation would be triggered in February.

He resigned his post amid widespread criticism of the force’s handling of the protests, which clogged streets around Parliament Hill for three weeks, and as pressure mounted to remove the heavy trucks.

A summary of an interview Sloly did with the inquiry body ahead of his upcoming testimony shows he felt the force couldn’t have done anything differently.

Sloly told the Public Order Emergency Commission he was faced with turmoil within police ranks, the police services board and city council.

The commission has spent the past week hearing from other senior police members, including the head of the Ontario Provincial Police, who says it was clear police in Ottawa were struggling with a plan to clear protesters.