A Toronto cyclist’s lawyer, who claims he ran off the road after being targeted with homophobia, has written an open letter to the city council, criticizing the city’s recent increase in police budgets and calling for improvements to its cycling infrastructure.
The incident, which allegedly occurred on January 21, was captured on video and posted on social media.
“A cyclist was targeted by a motorist, first subjected to homophobic slurs and then thrown off the road on Bathurst Street. The letter, written by Dave Shellnutt, an attorney at
“Witnesses found the driver’s license plate as he sped off and confirmed to police that the driver had deliberately boarded the bike.”
The video appears to show a cyclist turning into the right lane on Bathurst Street, trying to avoid a driver.
Moments later, a vehicle appears to stop beside the cyclist, who collides and falls onto the pavement. The vehicle is then seen speeding away.
Seven days after the incident was reported, the Toronto police officer in charge of the incident contacted the cyclist and told him the driver had been charged with “not giving you the right of way”, the letter said. increase.
However, Shelnut says police “failed to discover that a collision had occurred” and therefore a “proper” car accident report was not made.
“However, if there was a deliberate act of a driver using the vehicle to push a client off the road or crash into it, this cyclist would not have had to take any evasive action and would not have subsequently hit the curb. did,” he wrote.
“Based on the video and eyewitness testimony, it appears that additional charges should have been filed against this dangerous motorist. Careful driving, and failure to stop.None of these charges have been filed, and there have been no comments from officers regarding hate speech.”
The Toronto Police Service (TPS) did not immediately respond to CP24’s request for comment.
“As a lawyer for countless cyclists who have been deliberately injured by motorists who are rarely/unindicted, I have come to the conclusion that the violence at the TTC justifies the expansion of the police and the police budget while the TPS budget is being debated in the council. It’s amazing to see it being used to convert.” The letter reads.
“Without TPS and Mayor Tory mobilizing police to justify budget increases, we see an endless stream of violence in the streets.”
The letter goes on to say that the solution to road violence against cyclists is to build additional protected infrastructure, including bike lanes on Yonge Street, automated ticketing and investments in mental health support.
“We need bold leadership, not the police, to tackle the systemic problems of violence and inequality in our societies,” the letter said.
