Ottawa police chief Vern White held a Tuesday morning meeting to assure police officers the brass stood behind them. (Pawel Dwulit/Canadian Press)

Ottawa police chief Vern White met with his force's staff sergeants and inspectors Tuesday morning to reinforce his trust in them in the wake of the Stacy Bonds case.

The Ottawa police force has faced heavy public criticism since Justice Richard Lajoie of the Ontario Court of Justice slammed its treatment of Bonds, a 27-year-old woman who was arrested and strip-searched by police in 2008.

Superintendent Ed Keeley, an executive officer to the chief, told CBC News the morning meeting was held to show officers the brass stood behind them.

"I think that the members want to know that we are confident in their ability to deliver professional service, and that's the message that we're delivering now."

Steve Boucher, president of the Ottawa Police Association, said comments White made immediately after news of the Bonds ruling broke led the public to rush to negative judgements.

"I am also concerned about the state of the morale and the sense of abandonment felt by our members as a result of comments made by the leadership in our province," Boucher said in a statement released Tuesday evening.

"Every citizen is entitled to be treated fairly in circumstances such as these and not be presumed guilty … the OPA supports the belief that our members should be treated no less fairly," Boucher wrote.

White called for greater powers under the Police Services Act to deal with rogue officers in the wake of the incident, and launched an internal investigation into what happened to Bonds at the Elgin Street police headquarters.

Ontario's Special Investigations Unit — a civilian agency that looks into cases of serious injury, death, or sexual assault involving the police — is also investigating the Bonds case.

This week, another woman, 42-year-old Roxanne Carr, launched a lawsuit against the Ottawa police for "personal injury" that names two of the officers identified in Bonds's arrest.

Police board asks for public patience

Eli El-Chantiry, chair of the Ottawa Police Service board, said he's confident the chief is handling this difficult time well.

"The minute the board, or myself as the chair of the board, lose that confidence in the chief, I can assure you that's when we call for his resignation," El-Chantiry said. "We're not there yet."

El-Chantiry urged the public to show patience, and withhold its judgement about the officers involved in Bonds's arrest and treatment until the SIU finishes its investigation.