A police officer in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., died early Sunday after his police car was in collision with a minivan.
Senior Const. Donald Doucet, 41, was the first officer to die while on duty in the northern Ontario city.
He was a passenger in a police car when the accident happened at 2:45 a.m.
Platoon Chief Terry Dubois said firefighters had to use the jaws of life to free Doucet and the driver of the patrol car. Doucet died a short time later in hospital while the driver of the police car and the driver of the minivan were injured.
The minivan driver was not identified. But police said a 29-year-old woman is in police custody and was to appear in bail court on Monday.
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty expressed his condolences to the officer's family, friends and colleagues.
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to Senior Const. Doucet's family," McGuinty said in a news release. "Policing is dangerous work that takes a special commitment to community service. Sometimes our officers make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty and such a loss is a tragedy for us all."
Doucet, who had served on the Sault force for 12 years, is survived by his wife, Debbie, and his daughters Jocelyne, 19, and Courtney, 16.