Toronto Cops are Dirty

[jwmorrice]

Interesting story in all the Toronto papers today about corruption in the drug squad and how the police ranks closed against an RCMP probe of wrong doing. Here's a link to the Globe and Mail version: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040120.wdrugs0120/BNStory/National/

There's so much dirty money in drugs I guess we shouldn't be surprised at some police going bad. However, the protective reaction by their fellow officers, even to a probe by our national force, is damn shameful. The next time the 'Toronto cops are tops' slogan is bandied about more than a few will likely be cringing.

I guess we should be happy that there isn't too much money in the strip club game or some of these types would be shaking them down. Small blessings.

jwm

 

[joebear]

you can understand why the police are resisting having cameras in the police cars so as not to have an indepentant witness as to the stunts they try to pull and whatever, if any, misconduct takes place .

who do judges believe in court ? the officer or the defendant ?

99.99 percent they believe the police since there is no corroborating evidence from the defendant.

 

[islandman4567]

"99.99 percent they believe the police since there is no corroborating evidence from the defendant"

according to a judge that I was in front of for an illegal turn on a stop light . cops don't lie . they have no reason .

innocen 'til proven guilty? YEAH RIGHT!!

If they've got nothing to hide then why are they resisting it?

Isn't that the argument they were using for photo radar ? if you ain't speeding , then you 've got nothing to worry about.

 

[Quest4Less]

There are bad apples in every group, every field, every company. Just because some MAY be "dirty" (not proven yet)... don't paint them all the same colour.

99.9% of the time cops ARE right. Who would you rather go to for help........ a cop, or a crook?

Now if we could just convince the politicals to put more emphasis on violent crime, and ease off on things like m.p.'s (and s.p.'s), and maybe even marijuana ..... Then give the cops and judges some real TEETH when it comes to punishment.....

 

[james t kirk]

The police force in Toronto is a beast out of control.

We all remember the BS associated with Craig Brommel and "Operation True Blue"

Does anyone else in here remember the 5'th estate doing a show on Operation True Blue and the police union and Deputy Chief Robert Kerr starting to cry while he was being interviewed telling about how he had been threatened by other cops, and how he feared for his life!!! The guy was in tears for christ's sake.

http://www.eye.net/eye/issue/issue_02.03.00/news/cops.html

The cops in Toronto had the chance to turf Brommel after that entire incident but they didn't. Virtually nothing has changed with the police union since that time, it's just got a bit quieter. Behind the scenes, it's business as usual with the police in Toronto. And business would seem to be corruption, stealing, asaulting, narcotics, threatening, extorsion, bribery, lying, and everything else.

I am of the opinion that corruption is rampant with the police in Toronto. The entire force is rotton from the top down. This latest incident is just the tip of the ice berg and is merely one example of a system so corrupt and so out of control that it seems almost impossible to do anything about it.

The only solution might be a complete tear down of the police department starting at Fantino on down. Get rid of the rot. Replace cops with managers and make them truly accountable to the public. There needs to be a civilian at the top, not a cop. The days of cops running the force have to be brought to an end. Perhaps, even, privitize the police force and bring them under the control of the Ministry of the attourney General.

In either case, this is going to get interesting.

 

[gramage]

anyone else think james is gonna spend the night in jail tomorrow for looking like a description?

 

[kooley]

reminds me of a line I heard in a movie.
How do you get ahold of a dirty com??
DIAL 911 and ask for the police

 

[ocean976124]

In the US there was some small town in the mid-west where like one mile of the main highway ran through its town. They needed money so they inserted a photo-cam radar there and mailed tickets to every one that sped through their one mile strech of the highway.

 

[booboobear]

There are bad apples in every group, every field, every company. Just because some MAY be "dirty" (not proven yet)... 99.9% of the time cops ARE right.
Now if we could just convince the politicals to put more emphasis on violent crime, and ease off on things like m.p.'s (and s.p.'s), and maybe even marijuana ..... Then give the cops and judges some real TEETH when it comes to punishment.....

There is no may about it, do you really think they would be charged for no reason

As far as 99.9 % of the time the cops are right , I don't think so.

It's funny how when someone dies after an arrest because of a beating it is never because of the beating.

If however you beat someone and they died I guarantee you would be guilty.

 

[james t kirk]

anyone else think james is gonna spend the night in jail tomorrow for looking like a description?

Don't laugh....

There's a blue car sitting outside my place right now with 2 guys in it and the motor running.

 

[jwmorrice]

Don't laugh....

There's a blue car sitting outside my place right now with 2 guys in it and the motor running.

That's just OTB up to pay you a visit.

jwm

 

[someone]

In one way I think that things have improved. 20 years ago I think that this would have been completely covered up (I remember trying to file a complaint back then myself and the "investigation" was a joke). Although things have a long way to go, I think that this case shows that today it is at least possible to get an investigation that results in come action.

 

[james t kirk]

In one way I think that things have improved. 20 years ago I think that this would have been completely covered up (I remember trying to file a complaint back then myself and the "investigation" was a joke). Although things have a long way to go, I think that this case shows that today it is at least possible to get an investigation that results in come action.

Maybe, but then again maybe this was so far reaching and so huge that they had no choice.

I somehow think Fantino was boxed into a corner on this one and had to act lest he be implicated as part of the problem.

From what i understand, there were 17 cops who were investigated, but they chose to only prosecute 6.