SUV smashes through hydro box, then fences, before ending up in yard
December 28, 2009
Barbara Brown
The Hamilton Spectator
(Dec 28, 2009)
An off-duty Hamilton police officer is under investigation after a car crashed through a tall wood fence of a Mount Hope townhouse complex early yesterday.
The driver reportedly fled the scene.
Hamilton Police Superintendent Debbie Clark confirmed an off-duty officer driving a Volvo SUV was involved in a single-vehicle collision on Thames Way at 4 a.m., near Upper James and White Church roads.
Clark said nobody was injured and no charges have been laid as yet, although the accident remains under "active investigation."
The collision occurred in a residential subdivision west of the Mount Hope intersection. The vehicle also struck a hydro transformer and Hydro One was called to inspect the damage, said Clark.
Homeowner Cathy Robertson, 60, in whose back yard the sport utility vehicle came to rest, was awakened by a loud rumbling crash early yesterday morning. She got out of bed and went to peer out the sliding-glass doors into her back yard. She saw a grey SUV had smashed through a three-metre tall, wooden fence -- coming within two metres of her home -- before it struck a second fence.
Robertson said the Volvo's windshield was cracked and its headlights were out. A woman, dressed in civilian clothes, was walking away from the car when Robertson called to her.
"I called out to her because she was leaving and I asked her if she was all right. She said, 'Yes.' And I said, 'Is there anyone else in the vehicle?' And she said, 'No.' And then she disappeared into the dark."
The homeowner, who is a relative of former Hamilton police chief Ken Robertson, called 911.
Hamilton police marked off the accident scene with caution tape yesterday morning and blocked vehicle traffic to the street.
Robertson said it appeared in the light of day that the driver had first struck a hydro transformer located at the corner of Provident Way and Homestead Drive and then failed to negotiate the curve in the road.
The road conditions early yesterday morning were icy, she said.
bbrown@thespec.com
905-526-3494
The Spec
critter cartoon
Monday, December 28, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Niagara police officer charged with criminal harassment
December 25, 2009
Hamilton Spectator
ST. CATHARINES - Niagara police have charged one of their own with criminal harassment.
The officer is accused of harassing a member of the police force.
The officer was arrested yesterday and his arrest was announced last night.
Charged is Constable Timothy Packer.
He was being held overnight for a bail hearing.
Niagara police said no further details would be released at this time.
Hamilton Spectator
ST. CATHARINES - Niagara police have charged one of their own with criminal harassment.
The officer is accused of harassing a member of the police force.
The officer was arrested yesterday and his arrest was announced last night.
Charged is Constable Timothy Packer.
He was being held overnight for a bail hearing.
Niagara police said no further details would be released at this time.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Ottawa police officer appears in Cornwall court for assault charges
mpeeling@standard-freeholder.com
CORNWALL - A 34-year-old Ottawa Police officer had his first court date Tuesday to face charges of assaulting two children from a small North Stormont town.
The Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry OPP's Crime Unit arrested the officer on Nov. 14.
He was charged him with two counts of assault with a weapon and two counts of assault causing bodily harm following alleged incidents between February and October.
The Ottawa Police and the OPP are not releasing the officer's name or the names of the victims "to protect the victims' privacy and prevent further victimization."
OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae said said the children are known to the officer.
The officer has been suspended from active duty with pay.
The Ottawa Police Service's Professional Standards Section is investigating the officer's conduct.
He is due to appear in court again in late January.
Standard-Freeholder
CORNWALL - A 34-year-old Ottawa Police officer had his first court date Tuesday to face charges of assaulting two children from a small North Stormont town.
The Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry OPP's Crime Unit arrested the officer on Nov. 14.
He was charged him with two counts of assault with a weapon and two counts of assault causing bodily harm following alleged incidents between February and October.
The Ottawa Police and the OPP are not releasing the officer's name or the names of the victims "to protect the victims' privacy and prevent further victimization."
OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae said said the children are known to the officer.
The officer has been suspended from active duty with pay.
The Ottawa Police Service's Professional Standards Section is investigating the officer's conduct.
He is due to appear in court again in late January.
Standard-Freeholder
Toronto cop up on sex charges
Seven months after he was recognized as a cop of the month, a Toronto Police officer is now charged with sexually assaulting a man during a traffic stop.
The Special Investigations Unit was called in Sept. 8 after a complaint "of a sexual nature" was made against a Toronto Police officer, a press release issued by the province's police watchdog said yesterday.
The SIU was told that on Sept. 2, a 21-year-old man was stopped at Lawrence Ave. W. and Duckworth St., just east of Jane St., over alleged driving infractions.
"There was an interaction, and as a result, the man sustained injuries," the SIU said.
Const. Salameh Marji, who has been with the force for three years, was summoned yesterday is to appear in court Jan. 18 on charges of sexual assault and assault after SIU director Ian Scott found there were "reasonable grounds" to believe he committed the crimes.
Though Marji is stationed in downtown's 52 Division, he was assigned to the area of the incident as part of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy, a program aimed at building relationships between police and troubled communities, police spokesman Mark Pugash said.
In May, Marji, who also goes by "Sam," was among 20 officers honoured by the Toronto Junior Board of Trade in 2008. Marji and Const. David Rubbini stopped a man going the wrong way on York St. on Jan. 11, 2008. When the man tried to drive away, Rubbini ordered him out of the car. The man grabbed Rubbini's pistol and fired a shot through the bottom of his holster.
TAMARA.CHERRY@SUNMEDIA.CA
CNEWS
The Special Investigations Unit was called in Sept. 8 after a complaint "of a sexual nature" was made against a Toronto Police officer, a press release issued by the province's police watchdog said yesterday.
The SIU was told that on Sept. 2, a 21-year-old man was stopped at Lawrence Ave. W. and Duckworth St., just east of Jane St., over alleged driving infractions.
"There was an interaction, and as a result, the man sustained injuries," the SIU said.
Const. Salameh Marji, who has been with the force for three years, was summoned yesterday is to appear in court Jan. 18 on charges of sexual assault and assault after SIU director Ian Scott found there were "reasonable grounds" to believe he committed the crimes.
Though Marji is stationed in downtown's 52 Division, he was assigned to the area of the incident as part of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy, a program aimed at building relationships between police and troubled communities, police spokesman Mark Pugash said.
In May, Marji, who also goes by "Sam," was among 20 officers honoured by the Toronto Junior Board of Trade in 2008. Marji and Const. David Rubbini stopped a man going the wrong way on York St. on Jan. 11, 2008. When the man tried to drive away, Rubbini ordered him out of the car. The man grabbed Rubbini's pistol and fired a shot through the bottom of his holster.
TAMARA.CHERRY@SUNMEDIA.CA
CNEWS
Monday, December 21, 2009
OPP officer charged with impaired driving
The Record.com
December 20, 2009
Record staff
WATERLOO REGION – An Ontario Provincial Police officer who lives in Petersburg has been charged with impaired driving.
Feisal Minuas, 43, is an Elgin County OPP officer with 18 years service. He was off duty when the alleged incident occurred Saturday.
At about 7:30 p.m., OPP were advised by motorists of an eastbound vehicle travelling erratically on Highway 401, west of Woodstock.
Officers stopped the vehicle near the Sweaburg Road exit.
Minuas faces one charge of impairing driving. He is scheduled to appear in Woodstock court Jan. 19.
December 20, 2009
Record staff
WATERLOO REGION – An Ontario Provincial Police officer who lives in Petersburg has been charged with impaired driving.
Feisal Minuas, 43, is an Elgin County OPP officer with 18 years service. He was off duty when the alleged incident occurred Saturday.
At about 7:30 p.m., OPP were advised by motorists of an eastbound vehicle travelling erratically on Highway 401, west of Woodstock.
Officers stopped the vehicle near the Sweaburg Road exit.
Minuas faces one charge of impairing driving. He is scheduled to appear in Woodstock court Jan. 19.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Hamilton cop charged in domestic assault
December 18, 2009
John Burman
Haldimand OPP have charged a five-year-veteran Hamilton police officer with assault following an off-duty domestic incident.
The officer, who lives in Haldimand, was arrested Tuesday. His name will not be released to avoid identifying the complainant.
The officer has been re-assigned from operational duties to administrative tasks.
Hamilton police spokesperson Catherine Martin said the OPP were called in to investigate because the alleged assault occurred in this jurisdiction.
The officer is charged with three counts of assault.
He will appear in court in Cayuga Jan. 13.
This incident is the second time in 48 hours an area police officer has been charged with assault following a domestic argument.
An off-duty Halton police officer was charged Wednesday after the Halton police investigation involving the accused and his former common-law wife of two years.
The officer has been arrested and charged with assault, uttering death threat and criminal harassment.
He was a uniform patrol officer assigned to Milton.
He has been suspended from duty with pay.
The Spec
John Burman
Haldimand OPP have charged a five-year-veteran Hamilton police officer with assault following an off-duty domestic incident.
The officer, who lives in Haldimand, was arrested Tuesday. His name will not be released to avoid identifying the complainant.
The officer has been re-assigned from operational duties to administrative tasks.
Hamilton police spokesperson Catherine Martin said the OPP were called in to investigate because the alleged assault occurred in this jurisdiction.
The officer is charged with three counts of assault.
He will appear in court in Cayuga Jan. 13.
This incident is the second time in 48 hours an area police officer has been charged with assault following a domestic argument.
An off-duty Halton police officer was charged Wednesday after the Halton police investigation involving the accused and his former common-law wife of two years.
The officer has been arrested and charged with assault, uttering death threat and criminal harassment.
He was a uniform patrol officer assigned to Milton.
He has been suspended from duty with pay.
The Spec
Ontarians will suffer without extra hospital funds: critics
Ontario residents should expect to pay for more health-care services and endure longer lineups if the Liberal government follows through on its threat to freeze funding for hospitals next year, critics said Thursday.
Health Minister Deb Matthews has reportedly warned hospitals that she may freeze their budgets starting in the spring because the province is grappling with a $24.7-billion deficit — the largest in its history.
The most hospitals can hope for is an increase below last year's 2.1 per cent, which critics say is so meagre it has already forced hospitals to close beds and cut services.
The Liberals are now pleading poverty after foisting a health tax of up to $900 per person on Ontario taxpayers, said Progressive Conservative health critic Christine Elliott.
"The reality will be that a lot of hospitals are going to have to start cutting services to the public, and that's directly in contrast to what the minister originally said," Elliott said in an interview.
"I think taxpayers have every right to be outraged about this."
$154M shortfall
More than a third of Ontario hospitals — 61 in total — couldn't balance their books last year, amounting to a $154-million shortfall.
That number will only grow if the government starves hospitals of a much-needed cash infusion, critics say.
Patients will be forced to travel further for health care, wait longer for a hospital bed and may even have to fork over cash for services, said Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition.
"It means that we'll likely see attempts to close more of the small and rural hospitals," she said.
"It means that more services like physiotherapy will be cut and people will have to pay out of pocket for them ... It means longer lineups in the ERs because there's not enough hospital beds."
Premier Dalton McGuinty vowed in October to help cash-strapped hospitals through tough economic times, but there are signs that a freeze on hospital funding is imminent.
'Plan for zero per cent next year'
A spokesman for Lakeridge Health Network, which runs three hospitals and three specialty sites in east-central Ontario, refused to comment Thursday on how a funding freeze would affect its finances.
But in an earlier interview, CEO Kevin Empey suggested that any hospital hoping for a bigger increase in the next provincial budget is "dreaming."
"The signals from the government are: plan for zero per cent next year," he said.
Some hospitals are already on financial life support and are borrowing heavily to meet payroll and other essential costs, Mehra said.
Ontario's 159 public hospitals receive about 85 per cent of their funding from the province through 14 Local Health Integration Networks, which were set up by the Liberals three years ago to make local health-care decisions and dispense funding.
Hospitals are forbidden from running deficits by law, but many receive waivers from the LHINs because they've agreed to balance their books.
CBC.CA
Health Minister Deb Matthews has reportedly warned hospitals that she may freeze their budgets starting in the spring because the province is grappling with a $24.7-billion deficit — the largest in its history.
The most hospitals can hope for is an increase below last year's 2.1 per cent, which critics say is so meagre it has already forced hospitals to close beds and cut services.
The Liberals are now pleading poverty after foisting a health tax of up to $900 per person on Ontario taxpayers, said Progressive Conservative health critic Christine Elliott.
"The reality will be that a lot of hospitals are going to have to start cutting services to the public, and that's directly in contrast to what the minister originally said," Elliott said in an interview.
"I think taxpayers have every right to be outraged about this."
$154M shortfall
More than a third of Ontario hospitals — 61 in total — couldn't balance their books last year, amounting to a $154-million shortfall.
That number will only grow if the government starves hospitals of a much-needed cash infusion, critics say.
Patients will be forced to travel further for health care, wait longer for a hospital bed and may even have to fork over cash for services, said Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition.
"It means that we'll likely see attempts to close more of the small and rural hospitals," she said.
"It means that more services like physiotherapy will be cut and people will have to pay out of pocket for them ... It means longer lineups in the ERs because there's not enough hospital beds."
Premier Dalton McGuinty vowed in October to help cash-strapped hospitals through tough economic times, but there are signs that a freeze on hospital funding is imminent.
'Plan for zero per cent next year'
A spokesman for Lakeridge Health Network, which runs three hospitals and three specialty sites in east-central Ontario, refused to comment Thursday on how a funding freeze would affect its finances.
But in an earlier interview, CEO Kevin Empey suggested that any hospital hoping for a bigger increase in the next provincial budget is "dreaming."
"The signals from the government are: plan for zero per cent next year," he said.
Some hospitals are already on financial life support and are borrowing heavily to meet payroll and other essential costs, Mehra said.
Ontario's 159 public hospitals receive about 85 per cent of their funding from the province through 14 Local Health Integration Networks, which were set up by the Liberals three years ago to make local health-care decisions and dispense funding.
Hospitals are forbidden from running deficits by law, but many receive waivers from the LHINs because they've agreed to balance their books.
CBC.CA
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Complainant praises OPP officers after case dropped!
Two Ontario Provincial Police officers should have been commended, not investigated, says the woman whose domestic violence complaint eventually led to disciplinary charges against the officers.
On Wednesday, the OPP withdrew the charges of neglect of duty and deceit against Supt. Ken MacDonald and Insp. Alison Jevons, concluding a drawn-out internal disciplinary process.
MacDonald used to head the OPP unit that investigates internal corruption and Jevons was a senior investigator in the unit.
Both were investigating a complaint from Susan Cole, who said her estranged husband, Robert Alaire, a provincial police sergeant, had beaten her car with a baseball bat outside their Gananoque, Ont., home in April 2004.
Cole alleged the OPP officers responding to her complaint did not arrest her spouse but instead asked her to leave the house.
MacDonald and Jevons investigated Cole's complaint and concluded the responding officers had not followed proper procedure.
Very helpful, very honest and forthcoming, " Cole told CBC News on Wednesday, speaking about the two officers.
"They were one of the very few people I met that would actually listen to what the facts were and what was going on."
Union complained
After MacDonald and Jevons determined Cole's complaint was handled poorly, the police union filed a complaint against them, alleging they failed to follow proper procedure.
OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino then ordered an investigation into the matter. That probe agreed with the union, and Fantino moved in 2006 to charge the two officers with neglect of duty and deceit for their handling of the investigation.
"I think they got charged when in fact they should have gotten a commendation," Cole said Wednesday. "I don't want to use colloquialisms, but it was the big blue wall [that] closed in around my husband and the other officers involved."
Cole said she's pleased MacDonald and Jevons may now be able to finish what they started.
"I'm very excited that they may be able to pursue the domestic violence policy that they discussed," she said. "Under the current system, the spouse of an officer is basically unprotected."
Witch hunt alleged
MacDonald and Jevons fought claimed they were victims of a witch hunt orchestrated by Fantino and the head of the OPP union, the Ontario Provincial Police Association.
Fantino was to appear in court Wednesday for a defence cross-examination.
But the charges against the two officers were abruptly dropped in the morning, with prosecutor Brian Gover saying only that "this matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of the prosecution and the subject officers outside the discipline process."
Retired justice Leonard Montgomery, who had been hearing the disciplinary case, welcomed the decision.
"In my view … this settlement is in the interests of the officers and the interests of the administration of justice."
Accused of bias
Last fall, Fantino tried to get Montgomery removed from the proceedings, claiming he was biased. The allegation came when Montgomery expressed concerns after Fantino changed his evidence.
In November, Ontario's Appeal Court ruled Montgomery was not biased against Fantino.
Montgomery in turn complained Gover was trying to intimidate him and decried any government involvement in the quasi-judicial process.
The whole process has so far cost more than $500,000 in public money.
With files from The Canadian Press
CBC.CA
On Wednesday, the OPP withdrew the charges of neglect of duty and deceit against Supt. Ken MacDonald and Insp. Alison Jevons, concluding a drawn-out internal disciplinary process.
MacDonald used to head the OPP unit that investigates internal corruption and Jevons was a senior investigator in the unit.
Both were investigating a complaint from Susan Cole, who said her estranged husband, Robert Alaire, a provincial police sergeant, had beaten her car with a baseball bat outside their Gananoque, Ont., home in April 2004.
Cole alleged the OPP officers responding to her complaint did not arrest her spouse but instead asked her to leave the house.
MacDonald and Jevons investigated Cole's complaint and concluded the responding officers had not followed proper procedure.
Very helpful, very honest and forthcoming, " Cole told CBC News on Wednesday, speaking about the two officers.
"They were one of the very few people I met that would actually listen to what the facts were and what was going on."
Union complained
After MacDonald and Jevons determined Cole's complaint was handled poorly, the police union filed a complaint against them, alleging they failed to follow proper procedure.
OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino then ordered an investigation into the matter. That probe agreed with the union, and Fantino moved in 2006 to charge the two officers with neglect of duty and deceit for their handling of the investigation.
"I think they got charged when in fact they should have gotten a commendation," Cole said Wednesday. "I don't want to use colloquialisms, but it was the big blue wall [that] closed in around my husband and the other officers involved."
Cole said she's pleased MacDonald and Jevons may now be able to finish what they started.
"I'm very excited that they may be able to pursue the domestic violence policy that they discussed," she said. "Under the current system, the spouse of an officer is basically unprotected."
Witch hunt alleged
MacDonald and Jevons fought claimed they were victims of a witch hunt orchestrated by Fantino and the head of the OPP union, the Ontario Provincial Police Association.
Fantino was to appear in court Wednesday for a defence cross-examination.
But the charges against the two officers were abruptly dropped in the morning, with prosecutor Brian Gover saying only that "this matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of the prosecution and the subject officers outside the discipline process."
Retired justice Leonard Montgomery, who had been hearing the disciplinary case, welcomed the decision.
"In my view … this settlement is in the interests of the officers and the interests of the administration of justice."
Accused of bias
Last fall, Fantino tried to get Montgomery removed from the proceedings, claiming he was biased. The allegation came when Montgomery expressed concerns after Fantino changed his evidence.
In November, Ontario's Appeal Court ruled Montgomery was not biased against Fantino.
Montgomery in turn complained Gover was trying to intimidate him and decried any government involvement in the quasi-judicial process.
The whole process has so far cost more than $500,000 in public money.
With files from The Canadian Press
CBC.CA
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Charges that involved top cop dropped against OPP officers
Charges against two senior Ontario police officers have been dropped — effectively ending a disciplinary process that threatened to tarnish the reputation of the head of the province's police force.
The charges against Supt. Ken MacDonald and Insp. Allison Jevons were thrown out on Wednesday when the hearing resumed at OPP headquarters in Orillia. MacDonald used to head the unit that probes internal corruption and Jevons was a senior investigator in the unit.
They were both charged with neglect of duty and deceit. But the two officers claimed they were victims of a witch hunt inside the Ontario Provincial Police force being orchestrated by OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino and the head of the OPP union, the Ontario Provincial Police Association.
The decision also comes more than a year after Fantino began a series of legal moves aimed at having Justice Leonard Montgomery removed from the case because of remarks he made during the proceedings.
The motion was rejected by a divisional court and upheld last month by the Ontario Court of Appeal.
On Wednesday, when the hearing was scheduled to resume, the charges against the two officers were dropped — and that means Fantino will not have to return to the witness box.
The disciplinary case centred on an investigation that looked into why OPP supervisors in eastern Ontario looked the other way when a local officer allegedly took a baseball bat to his wife's car. When MacDonald and Jevons concluded there was misconduct, the police union filed a complaint claiming major problems with the whole investigation.
Fantino, who was new to the job as commissioner, ordered a review of the findings. He later agreed with the union and charged the two senior officers with neglect of duty and deceit for their handling of the investigation.
MacDonald and Jevons, however, fought back and in the process made their own allegations. Part of their evidence was an email in which the union said it wanted to "Take down MacDonald."
MacDonald and Jevons also claim Fantino bowed to union pressure.
Days before charging MacDonald, another senior officer testified Fantino said, "Are you going to execute the disloyal one, or am I?" The senior officer made notes of the comments.
The defence claimed that when Fantino learned those notes were about to become evidence, the officer was told he was being transferred to North Bay.
Lawyers for the two accused officers said that amounted to witness tampering.
During his testimony Fantino called the allegations "hysterical nonsense" and denied he was bowing to pressure from the OPP union.
Fantino also denied any personal vendetta against MacDonald and Jevons.
CBC.CA
The charges against Supt. Ken MacDonald and Insp. Allison Jevons were thrown out on Wednesday when the hearing resumed at OPP headquarters in Orillia. MacDonald used to head the unit that probes internal corruption and Jevons was a senior investigator in the unit.
They were both charged with neglect of duty and deceit. But the two officers claimed they were victims of a witch hunt inside the Ontario Provincial Police force being orchestrated by OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino and the head of the OPP union, the Ontario Provincial Police Association.
The decision also comes more than a year after Fantino began a series of legal moves aimed at having Justice Leonard Montgomery removed from the case because of remarks he made during the proceedings.
The motion was rejected by a divisional court and upheld last month by the Ontario Court of Appeal.
On Wednesday, when the hearing was scheduled to resume, the charges against the two officers were dropped — and that means Fantino will not have to return to the witness box.
The disciplinary case centred on an investigation that looked into why OPP supervisors in eastern Ontario looked the other way when a local officer allegedly took a baseball bat to his wife's car. When MacDonald and Jevons concluded there was misconduct, the police union filed a complaint claiming major problems with the whole investigation.
Fantino, who was new to the job as commissioner, ordered a review of the findings. He later agreed with the union and charged the two senior officers with neglect of duty and deceit for their handling of the investigation.
MacDonald and Jevons, however, fought back and in the process made their own allegations. Part of their evidence was an email in which the union said it wanted to "Take down MacDonald."
MacDonald and Jevons also claim Fantino bowed to union pressure.
Days before charging MacDonald, another senior officer testified Fantino said, "Are you going to execute the disloyal one, or am I?" The senior officer made notes of the comments.
The defence claimed that when Fantino learned those notes were about to become evidence, the officer was told he was being transferred to North Bay.
Lawyers for the two accused officers said that amounted to witness tampering.
During his testimony Fantino called the allegations "hysterical nonsense" and denied he was bowing to pressure from the OPP union.
Fantino also denied any personal vendetta against MacDonald and Jevons.
CBC.CA
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No more taxes after HST...I promise!
They had No Choice!
They wore these or I took away thier toys for 7 days!
No kidding!
"Damn Street Racer"pays with Brusies
