When Is A Police Quota System Not A Quota System?

Apparently, when it is a 'performance standard.'

Why The Star Is The Real 'Newspaper Of Record'

Those who regularly read The Toronto Star will hardly be surprised to learn that it has just won five National Newspaper Awards for the excellence of its reporting, reporting that often results in some real benefits to society. A new benefit appears to be emerging as a result of its two-part investigation into police who lie under oath.

While its response to the investigation could be cynically dismissed as a political one, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police now says that

... the justice system should report police officers who are found by judges to have lied, misled the court or fabricated evidence.

“If a judge perceives that an officer has not fulfilled his oath of honesty, a judge should report it to a police service. The national association would naturally support mechanisms that would ensure this happens,” said association spokesperson Timothy Smith.

Despite the dismissal of the series by Mark Pugash, who has basically said that The Star doesn't know what it is talking about and can't be taken seriously, the chair of the civilian oversight Toronto Police Services Board, Alok Mukherjee, told the Star he is troubled by this “serious issue” and wants something done to stop the lies from eroding the public’s trust in his police force.

At a time when the majority of mainstream media seem to be constrained by the agenda of their corporate masters, it is reassuring that The Toronto Star continues in unfettered fashion to pursue important work leading to a better Canada.

Police Who Lie Under Oath - Part 2

Part 2 of The Star series on the problem of police lying under oath is available on its website. Today's coverage examines the lack consequences for such behaviour, many departments seeming to prefer a see-no-evil, hear-no-evil kind of approach. And as per his function, the always pugnacious Mark Pugash, Toronto Police spokesman, accuses the Star of not knowing what they are writing about.

Are Police Too Sensitive Or Simply Arrogant?

For some time now I have been closely following abuses of power, with special interest in instances involving our politicians and our police. Because both groups wield so much power, I believe that they need to be held to a very high stand which, unfortunately, they often fail to achieve.

I suspect that because both arenas involve a level of public trust that most of us do not enjoy, the temptation for participants in those arenas to see themselves as separate and above the public they serve must be very great; there is certainly no shortage of distressing events that attest to that hubris.

Recently, a criminal lawyer, Reid Rusonik used the term 'the banality of evil' to describe the widespread 'carding' of black males in Toronto. Rather than address the issue at the heart of the article, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, in a letter to the Star, expressed how he found the use of that term offensive, castigating the newspaper for allowing it to find its way into print.

Personally, I have never forgiven Blair for the pivotal role he played in the police violence that marred the 2010 G20 summit in Toronto, a role that he has consistently refused to acknowledge or show any contrition for. It is for that reason I find his umbrage at the term 'banality of evil' a bit difficult to swallow.

In a column well-worth reading in today's Star, Heather Mallick takes Blair to task over his arrogance/sensitivity.

A Little More G20 Justice

In one of the more despicable acts of police brutality during the G20 Summit in Toronto in June of 2010, a paraplegic man, Gabriel Jacobs, was “dragged” from his motorized wheelchair, thrown into the back of a police cruiser and left on the floor of a temporary G20 detention centre where he defecated on himself because guards refused to help him.

Jacobs, who had been seeking $100,000 for his mistreatment and humiliation from the Toronto police, has reached a settlement which, like so much else about that notorious weekend, must remain confidential. And of course the police are not about to shed any light:

When asked if the settlement could be seen as an admission of guilt by the police, Mark Pugash, the director of corporate communications for the Toronto police, said “settlements, by definition, do not involve any admission of any kind.”

So much for openness and transparency, eh, Chief Blair?

Another Kind of Power Abuse

Although the political abuse of power is endemic in this country, especially at the federal level, it is sadly not the only one in which innocent people are victimized.

While I have frequently written on police misuse of power, the instances of that abuse, and the difficulty in bringing the perpetrators to account, seem only to be growing. Both Susan Clairmont, of The Hamilton Spectator, and The Star's Rosie DiManno, in an especially hard-hitting piece, offer some important insights into the obstacles faced by those seeking to bring rogue authorities to justice.

New From The Police Beat

Ryan Tocher, a Hamilton police officer who the SIU likely has on speed dial, is being investigated for a third time by the ostensibly impotent unit, this time for his involvement in the death of an unarmed Phonesay (Pun) Chanthachack, who was shot earlier this month while behind the wheel of his van.

What's the old saying, Three strikes and you're out?

Meanwhile, police in Toronto are outraged over the fact that one of their own, Const. David Cavanagh, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Eric Osawe, who was shot in the back two years ago.

Toronto Police Association union president Mike McCormack called the murder charge “over the top,” saying there is no new evidence against the 35-year-old officer. “The Crown has had this case for two years. Nothing has changed,” he told reporters.

“My concern right now is that membership and police officers who work in the city have lost confidence in the process.”

Perhaps this loss of confidence McCormack refers to will lead to some empathy on the part of officers, as now they might begin to understand what the public has felt after being witness to some very questionable police actions these past many years.

Lawyer Sues Police For Unlawful G20 Arrest

In a world where injustice seems to prevail, I suspect we have to be content with the small victories. Nicholas Wright looks like he is well on his way to achieving one.

Not a G20 Criminal-Cop, But A Good Start

Once in a while, justice is finally served, however imperfectly.

Self-Serving Rhetoric From The Toronto Police

As one who strives to be a critical thinker, I am loathe to make absolutist or ill-informed statements and assertions, even as I admit to frequently falling short of the mark. Nonetheless, after the debacle of the G20 Summit of June 2010 held in Toronto, I find myself frequently dubious of statements from the police that may serve to conceal or excuse instances of brutality and blatant violation of our Charter Rights.

It is for this reason that I am very skeptical of assertions by the Toronto Police, as reported in today's Star about Sean Salvati.

Readers may recall that Salvati, a paralegal, was arrested, stripped naked, paraded in front of a female officer and left without his clothing in a jail cell in June of 2010, allegedly for public intoxication, a claim he vigorously denies. According to him, his humiliating treatment was prompted by an innocuous remark to a couple of RCMP officers about the task that lay ahead of them the next day, the Saturday of the G20 Summit.

Even if one chooses to disbelieve Salvati's claim, his lawyer's protracted and frequently frustrated efforts to obtain some basic documentation and the video of his client's ordeal is a testament to police obstructionism.

I hope you can spare a few moments to read the entire article.

Toronto Police: True Blue To The End

Anyone who might be concerned that recent events have put a strain on police solidarity can rest easy.

In an article in The Star entitled Retiring deputy chief calls G20 reaction overblown, Tony Warr, who is set to retire at month's end, has nothing but praise for the actions of police at last summer's G20 fiasco in Toronto.

A few quotations from the piece, which I am reproducing below, help to amply demonstrate not only police intransigence and misplaced loyalties, but also why the scars of that infamous weekend will likely never heal:

The public and media overreacted to events during the G20 summit, and police should hold their heads high. 

“There was a lot of good work done.”

“I defy anybody to have an event like that in their city and not have that kind of problem. Ours was a pretty minor one compared to what’s gone on in other cities.”

[T]here “seems to be a campaign by the media to keep this alive.”

Warr said he doesn’t want to second-guess officers for rounding up 1,100 people in the biggest mass arrest in Canadian history.

“Some of the media reaction was just disgusting,” 

Warr also made no apologies for the horrid conditions at the temporary detention centre on Eastern Ave., which was criticized for being overcrowded and having limited toilet facilities:

“People complained about the conditions there, but what did they expect when they get arrested? They’re not going to be taken to the Hilton. Jail is not a nice place,”

When such a shocking lack of empathy, understanding and insight into the seriousness of what transpired last year comes from a Deputy Police Chief, and our political 'leaders', both provincial and federal, display a similar nonchalance about egregious police wrongdoing, is it any wonder that the antipathy and suspicion of Canadians towards the police continues to fester and grow?

Vindication For Those Abused By G20 Police Forces

The vast majority of the 1100 people abused, assaulted and arrested as a result of the thuggish actions of the G20 police forces, apparently intent on suppressing Canadians' Charter Rights last June in Toronto, must be feeling a deep measure of vindication today, this despite the fact that Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair have never acknowledged that anything wrong transpired and, of course, have blocked any attempts to hold an inquiry to begin to heal the damage done to our democratic traditions and our trust in the police.

The Toronto Star headline, Aggression during G20 rally ‘perpetrated by police,’ judge rules speaks a truth long evident to those who were either present at the demonstrations or saw a wealth of video evidence depicting an out-of control constabulary wilfully suppressing our democratic right to protest last year in Ontario's capital.

Justice Melvyn Green made his comments after dismissing the charges against a 32-year-old bricklayer from London, Ontario, Michael Puddy, whose only 'crime' seems to have been wearing a T-shirt that offended police sensibilities, leading to his being arrested and charged with obstructing police, concealing a weapon and possession of a prohibited weapon, a pocket knife that he uses in his trade.

As reported in the Star,

The London, Ont. bricklayer was on his way to a concert downtown when he joined the front line of the late-night Saturday rally. Puddy was wearing a “Police Bastard” T-shirt named after a punk band, when he was pushed to the ground and cuffed.

Puddy was shuffled from officer to officer and eventually transported to the temporary Prisoner Processing Unit on Eastern Ave. He spent two days behind bars and was forced to sleep on a concrete floor and use a toilet without a door before he was released on $25,000 bail.

Justice Green made the following comment which, to me, reflects the most serious implications of the unwarranted police actions:

“The zealous exercise of police arrest powers in the context of political demonstrations risks distorting the necessary if delicate balance between law enforcement concerns for public safety and order, on the one hand, and individual rights and freedoms, on the other.”

How do we calculate the true cost of police actions that one normally associates with non-democratic states? How many people, for example, will choose to never (again) take part in a public demonstration or otherwise stand up for their beliefs because of what happened in Toronto?

Even if it is only one person, the cost of the G20 will still have been too high.

The Star: Police Strip Searches On The Rise

As reported in today's Toronto Star, "Toronto police strip searched roughly 60 per cent of the people they arrested in 2010, compared to 32 per cent 10 years ago, according to police statistics."

Given recent high profile incidents of this practice, some have suggested that the authorities are using the searches as a tool of intimidation and humiliation, yet another indication of a creeping authoritarianism insinuating itself into our social fabric.

But there may be another explanation. Given the high profile evidence of faltering police facial-recognition skills, and since we all come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and endowments, perhaps they are merely employing an adaptive strategy to more definitively and completely identify us for future reference, whether that be in a court of law or elsewhere.

Once More, The SIU Cannot Fulfill Its Mandate

In what I can only construe as inept or complicit leadership at the top, the Toronto Police Service, thanks to massive obstructionism amongst the rank and file, has once again thwarted the SIU in fulfilling its mandate to properly and effectively investigate police wrongdoing.

As reported in The Globe and Mail:

Three officers investigated in a high-profile case of alleged police brutality at last year's G20 summit will not be charged after several peers, including supervisors, did not or could not say whether the officers had been involved in beating Adam Nobody, the province's police watchdog said Monday.

In my opinion, that lead tells us all we need to know about how much the Toronto Police co-operated with the SIU in its investigation. That after all this time only one officer, Babak Andalib-Goortani, has been charged, despite the fact that Adam Nobody was attacked by a phalanx of cops, means that the corrupt concealment of the truth by Toronto's 'finest' has been ongoing, and the person most responsible for facilitating that culture in the context of the G20, Police Chief Bill Blair, has much to answer for.

Despite his unwillingness to acknowledge any responsibility for his officers' actions or their subsequent concealment and obstructionism, Chief Bill Blair needs to resign as the first step in beginning to heal the massive breach in public trust that arose from the G20 police actions. To do anything less is to put career above the public good.

A Late Afternoon Thought On The Murdoch Scandal

I just read a post by The Disaffected Lib discussing the mounting number of resignations resulting from the Rupert Murdoch scandal. Both the Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan London Police (Scotland Yard) have resigned because of the disrepute they have brought to the organization through their actions and omissions.

Its a funny thing about the British, isn't it? I remember years ago when they were involved in the Falklands War, Lord Carrington, the British Foreign Secretary, resigned because he hadn't anticipated the conflict.

Meanwhile, in Canada, whenever something goes awry, a politician or public official may say he or she 'accepts full responsibility,' she retains her job, and everyone moves on as if nothing happened. Or to bring it even closer to home, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, who apparently apologizes for nothing and accepts responsibility for nothing, continues in his position despite the atrocities committed by the police under his control during last June's G20 summit.

Only in Canada, you say?

The Real News Commentary on G20 Summit Police Crimes

As always, The Real News offers a refreshing perspective rarely found in the mainstream media. Anything that continues to keep the G20 police abuses of Charter Rights in the public forum can be nothing but good for our democracy.

Judge Excoriates Cops As Thugs, Expresses Contempt For Superiors Who Conceal

Yesterday I posted some of the comments made by Justice Allen upon sentencing two Toronto police officers to a year of house arrest for beating a Cabbagetown man in 2009. Today there are further comments in The Star by the Superior Court Judge, including the following:

Police turned a blind eye to thuggish behaviour by officers that’s worthy of a criminal gang. He said, “This attitude is inconsistent with effective policing. It is inconsistent with the rule of law” describing it as "...behaviour we expect from gang members on the street, not the police.”

Allen was sharply critical of superior officers at 51 Division who didn’t report the attack to the civilian Special Investigations Unit, which probes incidents where police cause serious injuries.

“Any officer who is prepared to turn a blind eye to the use of excessive force has to take some responsibility when their colleagues are facing the loss of their career and their liberty.”

Justice Allen's most damning comments came when he spoke of what motivated the police attack:

“This crime was committed because Mr. Moore spoke disrespectfully to the officers, calling them the rich man’s army and suggesting they go arrest some gangster,” Allen said. “The officers decided to put him in a cell overnight and then beat him severely when he did not cooperate in his arrest.”

Clearly, despite the myriad examples of police brutality and abuse of authority being made public, the Toronto Police force and, I suspect, the forces in many other jurisdictions, are still out of control, aided and abetted by superiors ignoring the brutality either because they are part of the 'blue wall of silence' or crave career advancement.