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Remember Ryan Russell, remember reason

By all accounts, Sergeant Ryan Russell, the Toronto police officer killed under still unclear circumstances early Wednesday morning, was a respected member of the Toronto Police Service, a rising star, a good guy.

Russell was a go-getter, remembered by former fellow officer Doug Minor as “an eager new partner” when he joined the Gun and Gang Task Force in 2006, before being promoted to sergeant and moving to 52 Division last August. Russell was a court-recognized expert on street gangs.

Minor said in a profile posted of the fallen officer on the service’s website that Russell “was not the type of guy to back down” from any situation.

Thursday morning, Richard Esber Kachkar, 44, of no fixed address, was charged with first degree murder and two counts of attempted murder.

Details of the events leading to Russell’s death are still sketchy. All the force has issued is a five-paragraph press release. What is known is that Russell died after allegedly being rundown or hit by a snowplow stolen some time earlier at Dundas and Parliament by a man identified as being barefoot.

The Special Investigations Unit, called in to probe the circumstances leading to the arrest of the driver of the snowplow – he was reportedly shot several times in a takedown involving ETF officers in the Junction area – has yet to offer its take on events. It’s important to remember that.

Police, though, have been describing Russell’s death as a homicide all along. Police chief Bill Blair, justifiably upset by the event, called Russell’s death “murder” three times at a press conference Wednesday afternoon, before charges had been formally laid.

The outpouring surrounding Russell’s death, from both civic leaders and Torontonians, has been heartfelt and overwhelming. The flags at City Hall are flying at half-mast. It’s sad whenever a cop dies in the line of duty.

But hopefully Russell’s death won’t follow the course of some other officers killed on the job, end up being politicized, used and cheapened by the brotherhood for whatever gain. Perhaps it’s human nature for police to want their pound of flesh when one of their own meets a tragic end, as if that somehow gives it meaning.

But many questions still remain, including of the person behind the wheel of that snowplow when Russell was killed, the answers to which won’t be fully known or understood until after a trial, probably several years from now.

Yet, in the court of public opinion, the alleged “cop killer,” as he is now being described by at least one media outlet, has already been convicted.

While they are difficult to raise in the emotional context of Russell’s death, there may be some legitimate questions of officers’ actions to be asked, for all we don’t know about the incident.

The stolen snowplow was reportedly being monitored by GPS throughout what is being described as a two-hour “rampage” across the city. Yet there are other reports suggesting the truck never clocked more than 30 kilometres an hour throughout the entire two-hour episode. Are there policies around police pursuits that need to be addressed?

In the coming days there will be a funeral for Russell. There will be pictures in the papers of grieving friends and relatives, of the wife and two year old son a young officer left behind. Police from across the country will be decked out in uniform in a show of solidarity. Stories of a courageous officer’s exploits and the tragedy of a life cut short will be told. That’s how Russell should be remembered.

I’m hoping otherwise, but the politics seem inevitable.

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