Eighteen year old Toronto teenager, Sammy Yatim, on July 27, 2013 was killed by Toronto police as he stood on an empty street car holding a small knife. He was shot at nine times and tazered twice, shot first and tazered second. Eight of the nine bullets struck their mark.
You can watch the video of the incident here.
Toronto Police Chief, Bill Blair, staged the first of the press conferences – 11:00 am the same morning – but left the public and media with more confusion that answers.
The public instead has started holding their own solidarity demos to demand answers for the Yatim family, and other victims of police shooting.
On Thurday 8, 2013, André Marin (Ontario’s Ombudsman) made a public announcement of a probe under his direction. This move caused the president of the Toronto Police Union, Mike McCormack, to call the action a matter of, “grandstanding.”
Toronto Police Constable, James Forcillo, a six year veteran of the force, was eventually named as the officer who pulled the trigger. Again, due to public pressure, Forcillo would be eventually charged with second degree murder. The hearing on August 20, 2013, is covered by a publication ban.
He was charged with the murder yesterday and turned himself in this morning where he made a brief court appearance with his lawyer at Old City Hall, then was released from custody on $510,000 in bail.
Toronto’s chief officer went on to announce on August 15, 2013 — bowing to public pressure –- that he was appointing retired justice Dennis O’Conner to conduct an investigative review of the policies and practices around the use of force by the Toronto police.
Anti-police brutality activists were concerned that the appointment by Chief Blair of Dennis O’Conner was inappropriate due to the fact that O’Conner is a member of a law firm of Borden Ladner Gervais which has acted for Toronto officers in civil suits in the past.
Today, O’Conner made the surprise announcement that he was stepping down from helming the police probe.
“The basis for the decision is my position as counsel with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG), which also acts for the insurers of the Toronto Police Service in civil suits, some of which include allegations of the wrongful use of lethal force,” O’Connor said in a statement released Wednesday.
More to come.
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