Over a dozen people caught stunt driving twice or more by Ottawa police
Posted Mar 10, 2026 01:43:34 PM.
Last Updated Mar 10, 2026 01:43:41 PM.
The need for speed along Ottawa roadways seems to be subsiding, according to data, but police are noticing there are more than a dozen people who have been caught twice or more driving at dangerous speeds in the city.
Statistics shared to CityNews from Ottawa Police Service’s (OPS) traffic enforcement unit show that since January 2023, there have been 21 people charged twice or more with stunt driving — generally categorized as 50 km/h over the speed limit.
While this is lower compared to overall stunt driving charges laid each year, Philip Kane, OPS’s street racing and stunt driving enforcement coordinator, says the numbers showcase a larger problem. He told CityNews in an interview that he’s pulled over several people before who have been caught stunt driving in other parts of the province.
“If I’m dealing with someone at the roadside, I’ll see their driving history, and I’ll see their conviction,” he said. “So, lots of times I’ll see they’ve been charged by Toronto or Halton (police) or OPP with stunt driving elsewhere.”
It’s also happened in the nation’s capital, where Kane will charge someone and then find out they were charged again with the same offence, but by the Ottawa detachment of the OPP.
“This is a frustrating thing that we as police officers have,” he said. “We can lay a charge for stunt driving, it goes to court and, not all the time, but lots of times it’ll get pleaded down to a lesser (charge).”
Instead of the previous stunt charge, it could be knocked down to speeding, which carries demerit points and lesser fines, whereas stunt driving has a higher penalty cost, along with a licence suspension and vehicle impound. Kane said that in a case where he has noticed the person was previously charged with stunt driving, but not convicted, he will add a note in his reports to showcase that this is not their first time speeding excessively.
For officers on the ground attempting to keep roadways safe, the difficulties that some could be avoiding the penalties for their behaviour is frustrating.
Julia Facca, Press Secretary for Ontario’s Attorney General, Doug Downey, said the province has some of the “toughest” penalties in the continent for driving.
“Our government is continuing to take action to strengthen road safety and protect families while building a more responsive justice system,” she said in a statement to CityNews. “This includes exploring new measures that would require impaired drivers to pay ongoing child support if they kill a parent or guardian.”
Should stunt driving have more deterrents?
However, experts note that in Ontario, the Crown holds the responsibility for every case, and the decision on the sentence is not up to government laws. But in some cases, police have been working with the courts to find ways to ensure people who violently disobey road speeds can be prosecuted under stricter guidelines.
OPP Constable Michael Fathi said in October, police consulted the Crown in Ottawa and agreed that any speeds over 180 km/h, officers can lay a dangerous driving charge. This offence is under the Criminal Code of Canada.
In 2024, the OPS traffic enforcement unit asked its followers on X if they believed the penalties for stunt driving are “an effective deterrent.”
This question was posed to Kane, who, since 2019, has laid almost 1,000 stunt driving charges.
“The threshold for dangerous and impaired is the same right across the country,” he said. “But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the penalties under the Highway Traffic Act can’t be higher than criminal.”
Kane echoed the sentiments that Ontario has some of the strictest penalties in North America.
“So the penalties are there, it’s now up to the courts to impose those penalties,” he said.
