Month: July 2017

Toronto, Ontario, is often seen as a multicultural city where multiple races enjoy opportunity and equality. However, a Toronto Star analysis recently showed that Black people in the city are disproportionately arrested for small amounts of marijuana possession. Data also shows that Black people in Toronto are more likely to be stopped by police on the street than White people. This can lead to criminal charges with long-term consequences. The analysis compares 10 years worth of data from official police records. Although marijuana use is consistent across racial lines in the area, arrests and police patrolling focuses on Black offenders. From 2003 to…

As the Canadian government seeks to change laws surrounding marijuana usage, statistics show that police officers are increasingly cracking down on pot and other drugs. The police-reported crime rate in Canada has been on steady decline since its peak in 1991. However, Statistics Canada reports that police-reported charges related to illegal substances have been on the rise during this period. Drug charges increased 52% between 1991 and 2013 across Canada. Marijuana possession accounted for one half of all drug charges in 2013, with two-thirds of drug-related offences being pot related. In all, about one in 20 incidents police reported in 2013 were…

In Ontario, nearly half of all criminal charges are withdrawn before trial. This rate outpaces every other part of Canada. A recent report suggests that screening police charges to assess whether they are frivolous charges or involve truly Violent Crimes could be the solution to this large number of withdrawals and long waits for trail across Ontario. Violent crimes as serious as murder have been thrown out by the Supreme Court on dozens of occasions simply due to delays exceeding time limits. Meanwhile, criminology research shows that close to half of all charges brought against Ontario citizens do not even make it…

Organized crime activity in Toronto and the surrounding area has returned to the news following a bombing at Caffé Corretto. Police believe the explosion may be linked to other shootings and incidents at the residences of former and suspected mob members in Southern Ontario. They are investigating any possible ties between this explosion and other recent Violent Crimes This is not the first run-in law enforcement has had with Caffé Corretto. In Jan. 2006, the café was part of an illegal gaming sting by Toronto and York Region Police. Authorities say the sweep, named Project Oeider, resulted in the seizure of…