— Your Evening Update — 

November 21, 2024

Sometimes a reporter sends you something and you think to yourself, "I really can't wait to publish this."

In this case, Blair Crawford sent me a quick photo of a book he'd found at the library looking back at policing in Ottawa. There was a photo of a mounted police officer reaching down to hand a driver a ticket on Bank Street.

I had to know, was it a Citizen photo? A quick scan through the digital archives later, and it was clear it was, but the digital photo archives don't go back to the 90s. Thankfully, sitting in a file in the Citizen offices, was a whole folder of mounted police photos, and there it was, a photo of a cop on a horse giving out a ticket.

Now you, too, can see that photo along with Blair's brief history of the city's former mounted unit. Why so brief? Well, it didn't stick around that long. (For the whys of that, you'll have to read ahead.)

There's that and plenty more in your news of the day.

Const. Heather Wale issues a ticket to a driver on Bank Street for not wearing a seatbelt in this file photo.

PHOTO: John Major / POSTMEDIA

Do Ottawa police need officers on horseback?

By Blair Crawford

When members of Ottawa Police Services Board vote this week on whether to create a new police mounted unit, the answer is already clear.

The neighs have it.

“We’re the capital of Canada. We have a few protests in this community and there’s no doubt in the few years that I’ve been here a mounted unit would have greatly aided our team in managing that,” Police Chief Eric Stubbs said after the force’s 2025 budget was introduced earlier this month.

READ HOW THEY WILL BE USED

 TEMPORARY RELIEF 

Liberals to cut GST on beer, children’s toys and Christmas trees

Today's Evening Update was curated and assembled by Lois Kirkup. Our entire newsroom is proud to produce and share the journalism you see in this newsletter. If you’d like to support the Ottawa Citizen's mission to challenge the capital to be an inspiring, world-class, livable city, why not sign up for a digital subscription? We'd love to have you on board. 

PHOTO: Gavin Young / POSTMEDIA

Special forces tracked former soldier’s social media, shared private info without consent

By David Pugliese

Canadian special forces collected social media posts of a veteran as well as shared his private information without permission as they tried to strip him of his right to ask for government information, according to defence department records.

Documents shared with the Ottawa Citizen show Canadian Special Operations Forces Command claimed retired corporal Daniel Abboud was trying to intimidate its elite troops by asking questions about alleged wrongdoing and making posts on various social media platforms.

Among the posts were comments about how military leaders don’t properly take care of their soldiers and concerns that commandos had engaged in alleged sexual assaults as well as other illegal acts.

WHAT THE DOCUMENTS REVEAL

 FIERCE DEBATE 

Adam: Ottawa’s tent plan for refugee claimants deserves support

PHOTO: Wayne Cuddington / POSTMEDIA

Cancers caused by HPV on the rise as vaccination rates lag

By Elizabeth Payne

Ontario’s HPV vaccination rates are too low at a time when cancers related to HPV (human papillomavirus) are on the rise, according to a national medical women’s group that advocates for women’s health.

Dr. Chloe Rozon, an Ottawa-based resident physician in obstetrics and gynecology said vaccination rates in Ontario and the rest of Canada need to be higher. Rozon is a member of the Federation of Medical Women of Canada’s HPV task force.

“In other countries such as Australia where the vaccination rates are much higher, we see much lower prevalence of cervical cancer.”

READ WHAT THIS MEANS

 OFFICERS' TESTIMONY 

'Distraction blows' necessary to arrest Abdirahman Abdi: former cop

• Ottawa police arrest Greenpeace activists outside Pierre Poilievre's official residence

• Algonquin College nursing student was beaten and strangled, jury hears at murder trial

THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD PUZZLE

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