Advertisement

News

When cops kill, the ABCs

The latest video footage of Sammy Yatim’s death, from a security camera near where he was gunned down by police two Saturdays ago, feels unreal.

It shows Yatim, only his legs visible from where he stood near the front of an empty streetcar, being felled by nine bullets fired by Toronto police constable James Forcillo, for reasons that are still unclear.

Yatim was holding a knife. Before that he had exposed himself to passengers. But what provoked his death, what actual threat he posed to police or members of the public, is difficult to see from the video.

Yatim was shot several times while laying seemingly incapacitated on the floor of the streetcar. The video shows Yatim’s body twitching from the gunshots. He was later – too late, some would say – tasered.

It’s not something that can be easily forgotten. The public outcry that followed made that clear. Even a Sun columnist who is otherwise supportive of police is calling for charges.

But what if there had been no video? Would Yatim’s death have disappeared into the ether, like all the others, lost in a fuselage of he-said/she-said? It may well yet.

Most of the officers who showed up as the drama was unfolding seemed confused, unsure of what exactly to do. A few crowded around the front door of the streetcar where Furcillo stood pointing his gun. Others turned here and there looking for something useful to do, the tone having been set by the lone officer with his gun drawn. No one seemed to be calling the shots, as it were.

The side doors of the streetcar were open, a yawning opportunity for someone among them to maybe enter safely from a distance and try to talk Yatim down. Perhaps that was too dangerous an option, one that would have left Yatim feeling cornered. It’s difficult to know for sure. Tragically, no thought seemed to be given to waiting the situation out.

It’s not evident from the video if police protocols were being followed. There was no perimeter set up (at least not right away) to contain the scene or prevent members of the public from wandering into harms way. One cyclist rode right by within a few feet, just seconds before Forcillo let loose.

But even if the events that led to Yatim’s death didn’t follow the script written in the police handbook on how to defuse a volatile situation, the events that have transpired in its wake have followed an all-too-familiar trajectory.

The battle for public opinion has been engaged. Forcillo’s lawyer, Peter Brauti, the police union’s hired gun, told the Toronto Sun his client is “completely devastated.” Another report from an anonymous police source in the Post suggests Forcillo called for a taser to be brought to the scene, presumably as a less lethal option to the nine shots that were eventually fired.

Brauti is calling for a coroner’s inquest. That would certainly answer a few questions. But would also preclude the laying of criminal charges against Forcillo. Would the public be better served by an inquest? Not likely given the raft of inquests that have apparently solved nothing about how police are supposed to handle situations involving people in crisis.

Society is forgiving when it comes to the actions of those entrusted to protect us. There’s a lot of legal wiggle room afforded to cops involved in shooting incidents. Officers who fear for their lives or that of a member of the public are within their rights to shoot to kill.

Whether Forcillo (or his lawyer) can reasonably make that argument remains to be seen. Let’s not pre-judge. But there doesn’t have to be an imminent danger necessarily for police to justify Yatim’s killing. It’s usually enough for the courts if the officer honestly believed there was a threat to his life.

Police chief Bill Blair took the unusual step of holding a press conference to say a whole lot without saying much of anything. The chief wanted to reassure the public. But it was difficult to tell what was heartfelt and what was legal-ass-covering.

Blair said his officers would “cooperate fully” with the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the arms-length agency charged with investigating serious incidents involving police.

It’s an interesting choice of words. They’re the same ones used in the Police Services Act under the section setting out an officer’s duty when it comes to SIU probes. Unfortunately, the chief does not have a commendable record when it comes to the SIU. See: Blair’s covering up for the transgressions of his charges during the G20.

But there have been other issues, including conflicts with SIU director Ian Scott over police note taking practices among officers named in SIU probes. Can you say “collusion”?

Officers who become the subject of an SIU probe can’t be compelled to talk to the SIU. They’re also not required to turn over their notes. Witness officers, on the other hand, must submit to an SIU interview, but they often obtain legal advice from union lawyers on what to put in them. (Up until August 2011, in fact, subject and witness officers could be represented by the same lawyer.)

The chief has defended the practice, which doesn’t leave much room for unbiased investigations when it comes to alleged police wrongdoing.

There are no perfect victims. Yatim is no exception. But despite the public reassurances from the chief, it was barely within hours of his death that other details about Yatim’s life began to trickle out.

There was the screen grab of the shot of guns on his Facebook page. The reports of his being on the outs with his father. That maybe he smoked too much weed. The Globe reported on what it described as Yatim’s “fascination” with knives, as if all of it is somehow unusual for an 18-year-old. The words “suicide by cop” have been floated

All of it having the effect of aiming the spotlight away from the fact that, from what we know so far, a Toronto police officer acted improperly. Yatim’s death may not be so easily consigned to oblivion. We have video. Absent that record, this would be a very different story.

enzom@nowtoronto.com | @enzodimatteo

Advertisement

Exclusive content and events straight to your inbox

Subscribe to our Newsletter

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

By signing up, I agree to receive emails from Now Toronto and to the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.

Recently Posted