A local organization is upset police have taken so long to get in tune with the needs of and threats against Ottawa's sex workers.

Ottawa police say there is a "pattern" of violence among reported cases of abuse against Ottawa prostitutes. That includes six unsolved slayings dating back to 1990.

The head of Minwaashin Lodge, an aboriginal women's support centre, does not know why it took until December 2011 to find that "pattern".

Castille Troy is very aware of the ongoing relationship between police and prostitutes. Her Centretown Ottawa lodge runs a sex trade outreach program, which includes a team of social workers who hand out clean needles, clothes and provide first aid to area sex workers.