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The Toronto area was this close to a third police funeral in a month.
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On September 12th was the constitution of the Toronto Police. Andrew Hong, 48, who was brutally targeted and shot at close range in a Mississauga Tim Hortons by a man who went on to shoot four others – two of those victims also died.
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Two days later, the York Regional Police Const. Travis Gillespie, 38, was killed on his way to work around 6 a.m. in a head-on collision with a speeding car driven by a man who was charged with impaired driving causing death.
A Toronto police officer was allegedly assaulted by a motorist on Tuesday night. Investigators say they believe the driver “deliberately” hit police officers in a Scarborough car park, hitting one and forcing an emergency run to a nearby hospital.
Fortunately, while the officer was struck, his life was not in danger.
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“An officer was intentionally struck by a vehicle and the driver fled the scene,” Toronto Police Association president John Reid said on social media. “Police officers are increasingly subject to violence and yet continue to go to work every day to protect the public.”
Chief James Ramer said he was relieved that “the officer was not seriously injured, this is another example of the risks officers face every day to keep communities safe.”
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They are not safe. There are too many violent offenders on bail or parole and they have easy access to guns, knives and cars.
Police officers are singled out too often.
None of us will soon forget how a York police officer was ambushed in March 2020 by a man who had just been released on bail and was still in his prison garb. The officer was hit and beaten with his own baton.
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Police officers, uniformed or civilian, are vulnerable in today’s nasty world where criminals are given the spotlight while the police are held accountable for every decision.
It’s pretty uneven there. The rules do not apply to the criminal element. This is frightening.
In the latter case, Const. Victor Kwong said “plainclothes officers” were making an arrest on Kennedy Rd. and Ellesmere Ave., when all hell broke loose. Witnesses say that at 6:14 p.m., a white four-door car with Quebec license plates headed toward the officers.
Although only one was hit, others could have been as well.
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The car drove off and police later found it abandoned. But whoever was driving it was long gone.
For now. Police are asking for assistance in apprehending the driver.
This is not the first police officer hit in recent times.
On July 1, 2021, Ord. Jeffrey Northrup was run over and killed in the parking garage under Toronto City Hall. A man has been charged with murder in that case, which is still in court.
Police are looking for a driver who they say tried to kill another of their drivers. The only positive thing is that this time, thankfully, there was no police funeral.