Two years later, no accountability for #policebrutality at the #G20

A compelling argument from The Real News, calling for criminal charges. Not holding my breath, but still.

And a rocking video.




Where are we with that? Two assholes charged so far?

Related posts:

• Toronto News: Protester sues ‘This ain’t Canada’ cop after York police board refuses to charge him - thestar.com
• Another opportunity for the healing power of public scorn | @TorontoPolice #G20
• Couple more guys who are a real credit to the badge | @TorontoPolice #G20
• DiManno: Why won’t Chief Bill Blair say sorry for police actions during G20? - thestar.com

Another opportunity for the healing power of public scorn | @TorontoPolice #G20

Can't believe I haven't found this until now. Adam Nobody talks about the dickless pieces of shit who kicked him in the face after he was cuffed. Tough guys.

Note the memes that come out of this and have subsequently become ingrained in all post-G20 discussion: topping the list, the seminal "you should have stayed home" sentiment, wrong-headed though it is; the swaggering aura of unaccountability; the gratuitous sadism; and the overarching, stinking miasma of lies and insults to our intelligence. Thousands of cops right there. Egregiously criminal activity taking place right in front of their fucking noses. Not one of them lifts a finger to stop it. Not one of them sees, hears or remembers anything. Sorry, but if it's Adam Nobody's word against theirs, I know who I'd believe.

And we're coming up on almost two years later.

On a completely unrelated note, anyone know what Todd Storey and Luke Watson are doing?

Related posts:

• Couple more guys who are a real credit to the badge | @TorontoPolice #G20
• Police accountability in Toronto | #G20
• Payback's a bitch, isn't it ... Officer ...
• The Blue BS machine
• The Blue Wall is a threat to public safety
• Some real prizes we've got here
• What are we paying these people for?
• SIU Concludes Reopened #G20 Nobody Investigation | #policebrutality

Police accountability in Toronto | #G20

From the Globe:

The Office of the Independent Police Review Director concluded constables Michael Adams, Babak Andalib-Goortani, David Donaldson, Geoffrey Fardell and Oliver Simpson used excessive force after tackling Mr. Nobody to the ground.

The report concludes that charges should be laid, too, but apparently because it's taken more than six months, the chief has to get permission from the Police Services Board. (Yeah, that's how criminal procedure works for everyone, isn't it.) From the Star:

Usually, charges must be laid within six months of the incident. In this case, the police services board would have to approve an extension before officers can be charged and a hearing ordered.A source told the Star Friday the board has granted Police Chief Bill Blair the right to lay charges.

Cue the whining from the poor misunderstood victims in all this:

"This is almost two years down the road getting to this and this has been very arduous for our members," Mike McCormack, head of the Toronto Police Association, told CBC News.

But we haven't even gotten to the fun part. You know, about the two assholes who kicked Adam Nobody in the face after he was arrested and cuffed.

Oh, and the story also talks about the investigator who identified these guys when hundreds of their buddies couldn't. According to the Globe account,

He went over videos of the incident frame-by-frame, cross-referencing them with photographs and police deployment sheets, which listed officers assigned to the area that day.In some cases, he picked out minor details to figure out who was who: Constable Adams, for instance, wore a distinctive carabiner on his belt; Constable Farrell wore long sleeves.

So in other words, this guy – acting Detective-Sergeant Chris Kirkpatrick – did some actual police work. When hundreds of other cops, who were there at the time and whom we pay to notice details like this, couldn't identify these guys. Please, Mike – tell us again how there's no Blue Wall.

They're gonna love Det.-Sgt. Kirkpatrick when he gets back to the office.

Well, I'm just bursting with confidence in the system now. I'm sure we'll see action on

• the cowardly sacks of shit who beat the crap out of Lacy MacAuley
• the scumbags who tore John Pruyn's prosthetic leg off
• the sadistic pigs who got their jollies kicking Sean Salvati around in the interrogation room and then parading him around naked, in front of a female cop

any day now!

Related posts:

• The door's this way, Chief Blair
• How's that "building relations" thing going, @TorontoPolice Tweeter guy?
• Retiring senior Toronto cop calls #G20 reaction overblown
• @LacyMacAuley and my namesake: This is where we juxtapose, redux | #G20
• The Sean Salvati #G20 video: Abu Ghraib comes to Toronto
• The Blue Wall is a threat to public safety

@LornePW keeps the police accountability file up to date

Big tip of the porkpie to Lorne over at Politics and its Discontents.

There are times when the sheer inertia and toxic, paranoid self-pity at the core of dysfunctional cop culture makes you want to just give up. Fortunately, Lorne's got the energy and determination to get past those times.

The narrative. Always with the narrative.

There are times when it's possible to allow oneself a small measure of optimism, and kayn ayhoreh, this might be one of those times.

They won't get away with this!

Well, who could have foreseen it? Especially during budget season.

The Blue Tribe spins up its PR machine

Dear Lord, it's still going on.

For the last hour, CBC radio's been on about Sgt. Ryan Russell.