Suspects show 'total disregard' for bail conditions: Toronto police chief

Suspects show 'total disregard' for bail conditions: Toronto police chief

[...]
Sheldon Gladstone Evans, 22, was arrested Wednesday afternoon and charged with violating his terms of bail. Police allege that Evans was present during the weekend shooting of 11-year-old Ephraim Brown at an outdoor gathering in the Jane and Sheppard area.

Police said Evans has two bail orders placing him under house arrest. They also allege that Evans is a member of the 5 Point Generals (5PG) gang.

"One of the things that was demonstrated yesterday by that arrest is the total disregard that these gang members have for bail conditions," said Blair.

Blair said the police force has taken on responsibility for monitoring bail orders, because no other agency was doing so. He said they attempt to do compliance checks, but it's not enough.
[...]

Three for three. All three of the suspects arrested thus far should not have been loose on the streets. While you may argue that Michael Bryant can't rule the courts, two of the alleged participants were in violation of their bail, or pending serious charges on criminal offenses. Kwinter and Bryant both have a say, a big say, in the management of accused individuals, and the portfolios under their direct purview dropped the ball, as has been the case, time and time again. The death of Ephraim Brown rests on the shoulders of the Attorney General and the Minister of Public Safety. Both failed the Brown family, the City of Toronto, and with their reckless allegations against law-abiding firearms owners nationwide, haved failed the people of Canada.

Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant and Public Safety Minister Monte Kwinter must follow the lead of Mike Colle and do the only honourable thing: resign, immediately.

Parsing the Intellectually Challenged Toronto Star, Vol II.

Another from JacksNewsWatch:

"The dumbest editorial the Star has produced in years"

"I linked to the editorial this morning but it’s time to revisit because I’m certain that whoever wrote it can’t walk and chew bubble gum "at the same time (I truly believe it).

Ban handguns before more die

The senselessness of allowing widespread handgun ownership has never been more clear as Toronto mourns another innocent life lost in the crossfire of gang warfare. Easy-to-conceal pistols are the weapon most commonly wielded by drug dealers and other thugs. And, as events last weekend tragically showed, they seldom hesitate in opening fire with these guns, even in the presence of harmless bystanders."

“Widespread handgun ownership” is a lie. Handguns have been banned in Canada since the 1930’s with few exceptions. As a retired cop I feel safe in saying that after carrying and qualifying with a handgun for over FOUR decades I would have to jump through myriad legal hoops in order to own one in retirement. People who do have them belong to gun clubs and follow strict laws in order to continue their sport. That includes safe storage (removing the barrel from the weapon in the case of automatics and storing it elsewhere, along with the ammunition). Everything is under lock and key. Personally, I can’t be bothered with all the trouble and most wouldn’t. There are other ways to protect oneself.

"If pistols were made harder for criminals to obtain – if they were less prevalent in society – the bullets that ripped through 11-year-old Ephraim Brown on early Sunday might never have been discharged. That is why Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant, Toronto Mayor David Miller and others are right to continue to press for a Canada-wide ban on handguns. There is simply no good reason for the average citizen to own a pistol, certainly none that outweighs the devastation such weapons can inflict on innocent lives."

“If pistols were made harder for criminals to obtain…”. They aren’t. One can go to almost any street corner in downtown Toronto and arrange to buy one on the black market with no legal hassles. You pay a bit more but I could likely have any type of handgun I desired in my possession within a week. It has become very profitable for criminals to get into this line of activity, much like they have with tobacco. The more governments try to ban something the motoring public wants the more likely it will become a hot ticket item for those who disregard the law. The Firearms Registry has turned a struggling underground industry into a thriving business and handguns are now being trafficed across our borders in alarming numbers as crooks realize that the motoring public is defenceless.

"Law-abiding people with a practical use for firearms, such as farmers needing to rid their land of varmints, are better-served by a rifle or shotgun than a pistol. They have no need for this class of firearm. Yet about 400,000 Canadians own handguns."

"That’s right. Bring the farmers into this debate regarding long guns and then it’s back to bashing people who own handguns — ”Yet about 400,000 Canadians own handguns.”

"These gun owners are inadvertently helping to outfit a criminal army of the streets, which obtains many of its firearms by theft. About 97,000 firearms have been stolen or reported missing in Canada over the past 30 years. Between 2,000 and 3,000 more guns are added to that total each year, with a significant number believed to end up in the hands of gangsters. The other main way criminals obtain firearms is by smuggling them in from sections of the United States where these weapons are easily purchased. Action is needed to squeeze off both cross-border and domestic sources of gang firepower."

“These gun owners are inadvertently helping to outfit a criminal army of the streets.” As if every gun owner is a victim of theft and all guns being used in crime derive from this source. It gets better — “About 97,000 firearms…” — no mention that MOST of those firearms stolen are long guns (because there are no “short guns” available). This is cute — “Between 2,000 and 3,000 more guns are added to that total each year”. They don’t tell you that most are long guns because they don’t want you to know that. They want you to infer that what they are ranting about are hand guns."

"Canada’s police officers and border guards are doing their best to block the flow of firearms. There have been some significant arrests."

“There have been some significant arrests.” Indeed their have been some good grabs. So now, count the hand guns in the pictures displayed for all and sundry as opposed to AK47’s and rocket launchers."

"As well, police are right to continue their efforts to break up gangs and to put more emphasis on community policing in a bid to lower violent crime. Governments must contribute, too, through increased recreational opportunities, mentoring, job training and other services designed to discourage youths from joining criminal gangs."

Getting close to the end of the Star rant we notice they give an “Atta Boy” to the good guys (”As well, police are right to continue their efforts to break up gangs and to put more emphasis on community policing”). I am highly suspicious because they are using police efforts for their own ends.

And what are those ends?

“Governments must contribute, too, through increased recreational opportunities, mentoring, job training and other services designed to discourage youths from joining criminal gangs.”

As if that young gang kid is going to go to a gym and play volley ball when he can hang out on the corner with “Joe Cool” who’s “packin’ heat” and can teach him all the neat things little kids want to know. “Rapper stuff ya know”. Like how to screw the cops.

But the most pressing need in this struggle to control violence is a nationwide ban on handguns. Such a ban should be enacted without delay and with few exceptions to the rule. Police officers and the military obviously should still be allowed to carry pistols. And there may be room for a narrow exemption for elite competitive shooters. Everyone else should have to surrender their weapons under a federal buyback program.

“But the most pressing need in this struggle to control violence is a nationwide bad on handguns.” This is the dumbest statement in the article because all must realize that the only people that carry hand guns (apart from the cops and the military) are the bad guys and really — they don’t give a “flyin’ f**k” about handgun laws.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has not been a supporter of tighter gun control – quite the opposite, it has loosened adherence to the national long-gun registry. That attitude must be reversed if further tragedies, like the slaying of innocent bystanders such as Ephraim Brown on Sunday, are to be avoided.

“Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has not been a supporter of tighter gun control – quite the opposite, it has loosened adherence to the national long-gun registry.” Stephen Harper understands the situation and wants to correct it through tougher penalties for those who use guns in crimes. Unlike Miller and “McShifty” he isn’t pandering to the masterbating masses in order to buy votes and it’s well past time that Ontario MP’s DEMANDED that parliament be recalled and that crime bill he wants be passed immediately. There is no need for more kids to die. The only reason they still do is because of weak people using weak arguments which achieve nothing.

Final note: A gun (any gun) is an inanimate object, just like a car. Nothing happens until a human picks it up (or starts it). In each case a concious decision has been made by someone to use said object for ill or good. Nobody would suggest for an instant that because impaired drivers kill, all cars should be removed from the road.

But that is exactly what the Star suggests regarding guns.

“Gun’s don’t kill.”

They are a tool ”like a hacksaw”.

“People kill” and the sooner we deal with the real problem the sooner we will all be safe in our homes. I suggest we consider building a special prison just for them on an island in James Bay. We’ll let the flies, mosquitoes and extreme cold teach them what we cannot.

No soft cushy jail — no deportation.

Just a “fly bitten life” for the next 20 years or so with no phones and no visits from family.

“Poof — you’re gone.”

Picture it (mom sees the gun).

“You should get rid of that thing.”

“Why mom?”

“Cause if you get caught with it doing a crime you’re going to James Bay.

“Where’s James Bay?”

“You don’t want to know.”

Goodnight.
... Jack"

Canada has a “criminal” control problem.

Posted on July 25th, 2007 in Canadian Politics, Gun Crime by Sandy (Crux-of-the-Matter)

Canada does not have a gun control problem per se. It has a criminal control problem. We have easy bail, early release, mandatory release and light sentencing, all of which mean that we have a revolving door type of criminal justice system — in at one end and very quickly out the other.

In the last couple of days, many of us, including this blogger, have been talking about the latest shooting deaths across Canada and the necessity for passing the Conservative Government’s crime bills that are stuck in the federal Senate. In response, Liberals and some liberal dominated media, have been calling for a full ban on hand guns even though they are already banned and have been since the 1930’s.

Although I personally don’t like guns, I can look at this problem with objectivity and realize that the main problem is not with legally registered guns of any kind. The problem is a growing criminal and gangster rap culture in this country that is influencing our youth and very few deterrents or consequences to keep them away from those influences.

Moreover, illegal weapons are apparently very easy to acquire, which for some, become a status symbol. Meaning, that neither organized crime or young gang members are going to pay the least bit of attention to any kind of ban on guns. And, it is not only naive to think it will, it is dangerous.

Lorrie Goldstein has an excellent column in today’s Toronto Sun that clarifies the truth about crimes committed with legal guns. As Jack at JN pointed out yesterday in his fisk of the Toronto Star editorial, some newspapers seem to have deliberately confused legally registered hand gun statistics with those of long guns. As Goldstein states:

“Of the 5194 homicides in Canada between 1997 and 2005, 118 or 2.27% were committed with a registered gun, 63 or 1.21% were committed with a gun registered to the accused murderer and 111, or 2.14% were committed by a person who held a valid firearms licence. Of Canada’s two million licensed gun owners, 111, or .00555% used their firearm to murder someone.”

“On the other hand, in 2005, 64% of accused murderers had a prior criminal record, including 6% for homicide.”

The problems with the use of guns in crimes in this country seem obvious to this writer. It is not that we need more gun control legislation. It is that we have a lax criminal justice system. I called yesterday for the Conservative crime bills to be passed, particularly the one with minimum sentences for any crime involving a firearm. Yet, given some of the comments left on my blog, Liberals are still insisting it is a gun control problem.

How many more deaths need to happen before ALL provincial and federal politicians do something to get the criminals off our streets and to keep them off?

The 2006 Crime Stats Analysis - Time for the Truth

The 2006 Crime Stats Analysis - Time for the Truth
( A Prime Time Crime Exclusive)

By Scott Newark

We have this quaint saying in the criminal justice business that used to characterize our work; “The Truth, the Whole Truth and Nothing But the Truth.” The recent 2006 Crime Statistics put out, by some strange reason, the Minister of Industry are indicative, however, that for some, truth has become a casualty of self interested spin.

Headlines and newscasts leads from media outlets told the “story” last week: “Crime own to lowest levels in 25 years”. The average Canadian, especially the average urban dweller, in say Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Regina, Surrey, Montreal and yes, Toronto the Not So Good Anymore might have a hard time wondering if their reality was the same as the Industry Canada (?) analysts. Same thing goes, by the way, for folks living in smaller urban centers whose day to day experiences don’t quite mirror this latest government report. An ever ready cadre of public trough resident criminologists were immediately on hand however to pontificate that any public perception that there might actually be…you know…more crime than before was ignorance fueled by media sensationalism.

No doubt it’s just a co-incidence that these crime stats are released in the dead of summer although the simple acceptance of them without critical analysis by the media and the supposedly ‘new’ Harper government is disappointing. The truth is there but it takes some drilling down and comparative analysis to actually find it concealed as it is behind a bureaucratic shell game of mixing apples and oranges and deliberately excluding the fruit that is unquestionably rotten. In fact, stripped of all the statistical scam, this year’s crime stats are an even starker reminder than normal that things are bad and getting worse when it comes to crime in Canada.



Let’s start with what Juristat actually reports and how they choose to report it because those are the first clues to the deliberately deceptive reporting on crime in Canada. Fortunately, as is often the case in honest data analysis, they are also the first indicators of what the truth really is.

What the Juristat crime stats include…..and what they don’t.

Let’s begin with the survey itself. Buried in the introductory fine print is the admission of what it is and what it isn’t.

Reporting of crime

It is crimes that get reported to the police and which the police then report to the stats gatherers (and even that is watered down in multiple count/crime incidents where only the most ‘serious’ crime is counted). It isn’t crimes that occur that don’t get reported for a variety of reasons including, according to the Report, “…not wanting to involve the police…” which is an alarmingly growing phenomena in big cities. One of the reasons cited for this previously was “…fear of reprisals from aggressors” but this has curiously been sanitized from the current edition. One stat that is definitely not reported, but should be, is the number of unsolved violent crimes which is increasing because witnesses, and victims, are alarmingly concluding that the bad guys are more powerful than the good guys. As someone with twenty five plus years experience in our justice system I’d regretfully add ‘because nothing will happen’ and ‘because as a victim you can expect grief, expense and abuse’ to the reasons why crime is under reported.

This reality of under reporting isn’t irrelevant. In recognition of that fact, the same folks that conduct this police reported survey also conduct a community survey to directly identify persons victimized by crime (itself with highly restrictive parameters). If the ‘good news’ interpreters of the Crime Stats report are correct then presumably there should be a close co-relation of crimes reported, right? Guess what? The last such survey showed, when asked, Canadians reported crime happening to them at a rate three times higher than what the Crime Stats reveal.

Clearly, the most serious violent crimes such as homicide, robberies etc. are more likely to come to the attention of the police and thus be ‘reported’ while less serious property crimes are more likely to go unreported. Ironically, the supposed drop in crime which Juristat reports is “…driven by declines in non violent crimes…” whereas “…increases were seen in many serious violent crimes.” In other words, Juristat’s announced ‘drop’ in crime is based on an increase in violent crime that is more likely reported and a decrease in reporting of property crime that is less likely reported.

Finally, because many of us appear to have accepted more crime as inevitable is by no means the same thing as saying that crime is decreasing or that we could not take measures to reduce crime if we chose to do so.

Crime rate versus crimes committed


The rate of crime reflects the number of crimes committed in relation to a fixed amount of the population. If the population increases (as it has by more than 10% since 1989) then there will be an inevitable decline in the crime rate unless the volume of crime continues to increase beyond even its recent explosive growth. Put in non-Justice Department terms, there are more of us out there for robbers, killers, car thieves, and child molesters to choose from. Somehow I don't take great comfort in this. This year’s Juristat reports a 2006 population of 32,623,490 which is an approximate 1% increase from 2005 and approximately 4% since 2002 which are the comparator years used for this year’s analysis.

[Read the rest here] H/T from Crux-of-the-Matter via JacksNewsWatch

"Elected Politicians and Stupid Games"

[Cross-posted from Editorial Times.ca and Jack's Newswatch]

I originally had much more to say about the political response (and the absolutely drooling spate of editorials from the MSM) to the death of 11 year old Ephraim Brown on the weekend, but Jack at JacksNewsWatch has said all that needs to be said.:

In a day or so Toronto will bury another innocent child killed by unrestricted gunfire. Gunfire orginating from gang members who barely know one end of the weapon from the other. It is a pattern being repeated right acoss this country day in and day out. We hear the cries of people we elect beat an inanimate object to death as the “culprit” while they mourn for the gang members who must go to jail for life if they are caught.

Every excuse in the world is made for them and nobody hears the victims because they’re dead of course.

As Sandy correctly pointed out this morning our justice system is the true villain in this story aided and abetted by a moronic press pushing left wing values and the thought that we should be kind to criminals who are disadvantaged and only need to be understood [Sandy's writings are worth a journey on their own...Ed.].

Well, here’s what I understand.

Canada is awash in criminals that have fled Jamaica — and Jamaica is awash in cocaine — which is one stop on a known drug importation route that continues to supply North America with “happy powder”. The crime on that tiny island (and many others in the Carribean) has reached epic proportions and when things get to hot for said crooks they emmigrate to Canada, the US and Britain where they continue their nefarious deeds, completely heedless of our laws and our way of life.

They use our refugee laws (and many others) to seek sanctuary and immediately upon arrival they kill to establish their credentials in the “new world”.

Many others also flee from Jamaica. People tired of crime and death. They seek the protection of a country that enforces it’s law and they believe that their choice of a new land is the right one. How disappointing to end up in a neighbourhood living right next door to the thug that forced you to leave in the first place.

“Same old — same old!”

Another one of your kids die and you watch as our elected politicians (who are responsible for your safety) play games with a federal government as they seek political advantage.

It is to weep.

As a group, expat Jamaicans (and I know a few) should be infuriated by the recent actions of Dalton “McShifty” and David Miller who believe that more basketball courts will solve all. They should go ballistic as the Star and the Globe pander to said “voices of the people” and continue the lefty line.

Truth — everytime another innocent dies (of whatever color) the black community in Toronto should be all over municipal, provincial and federal elected politicians demanding to know why they are not supporting Stephen Harper and his crime bill, which proposes to “get tough” with the fools doing the killing.

I suppose that most are confused by the “gun argument” presently raging as very stupid (and uneducated) politicians make more excuses for something that should never have happened had they done their job.

They haven’t and they should all be fired because they are very sorry excuses for Canadian values.

Had that happened in the last election the criminals would now be aware (because they would be going to jail for life — and there would be no parole after serving “one sixth” of their sentence if they used a gun) they would be in “serious s**t”.

There would be no excuse if they were a “Youthful Offender” and ”major jail time” would follow.

Fact: There is no excuse for shooting another human being simply because you want to prove a point and that is what’s happening.

Jamaican crooks have brought their violence to Canada and so, nobody is safe.

The same holds true in Winnipeg with their large North American Indian population. It’s all about gangs and drugs.

Same in Vancouver as the East Indian and Chinese gangs wage war totally oblivious to our law and knowing that, even if caught, not much will happen. In that process our law is becoming a joke and citizens everywhere are alarmed. They leave their homes in fear when one of these fools run rampant when all they really need is a gun (for home protection).

Another truth — our population is aging and because they are they can no longer fight off a home invasion using “empty hand” techniques something more is needed to protect all we love and have worked for. That “something more” is a tool — “sorta like a skill saw” — but much more valuable.

It’s called a gun (loaded at that) and when your front door is “booted” in the middle of the night you have a response ready and waiting. If you blow that stupid person out of his shoes nothing should happen to you. It may be appropriate to send a few flowers to his (or her) funeral.

Never mind — to get back to the point.

Harper is trying desperately to change the picture of unending violence in our society through changes in the law. Stephane Dion and Jack Layton would have you believe he is wrong and all can be corrected through more basketball courts.

It cannot.

And innocents will continue to die unless we address the real problem.

“Guns don’t kill — people do” and I’m sorry to say that many politicians who are trying desperately to get their hands on your wallet will tell any lie, express any “other idea” in order to regain power. They are fools and only fools would vote for them.

There is more.

Our problems regarding violent death are not totally due to “piss poor” politicians. They may be laid directly at the feet of the court officials appointed by said politicians who continue to feel sorry for these “naked apes” hiding behind a Charter and Bill of Rights which protects them every inch of the way.

As far as left leaning politicians and our courts are concerned they are right and be damned the conseqences.

Well, the “consequence” yesterday was another dead child.

Let’s watch with anger as they try to explain that one.

We should also remember that public safety transcends “politics” and all should be on the same team.

Our judges and our politicians should follow a very simple thought:

“If you’ve done the gun crime pack your toothbrush. You’re gone.”

Much like we do with impaired drivers now.

Bryant and Miller go on another diversionary rampage...

[Cross-posted from The Editorial Times.ca]

Toronto Mayor David Miller said the latest rash of gun violence shows why Canada needs to toughen its gun laws, tighten border security and issue a complete ban on handguns.

"It's very clear that gun violence is connected to the ownership of guns," Miller told the media. "Handguns are still allowed to be owned in Canada, and they're stolen from owners and used in crimes."

The fewer guns there are around, the fewer are used in crimes - it's jut that simple," Miller said. "We (shouldn't) allow people to collect them anymore- -- collections are for things like stamps, not things that, when they're stolen, are used to shoot people."

"We know where the guns come from," Miller said. "Half come across the border, sometimes more than half. We need real action on border security.

"And the second thing we need is to take care of our own house. Handguns are still legal in Canada, partially, and we've got to make them completely illegal."[Miller]

"there are over 250,000 registered handguns in Ontario, all waiting to be stolen" [Bryant, CBC]

Political grandstanding on the tail of personal tragedy is fast becoming the contemptible, and increasingly blatant stock-in-trade of Liberals and other ultra-left in Ontario. Witness the recent "outrage" [and multiple media sources -Ed.] from Michael Bryant, Ontario Attorney General [Liberal, St. Paul's] and David Miller, knee-deep in water as the captain of the sinking ship that is Toronto. 11 year old Ephraim Brown was apparently hit and killed by a stray bullet about 1 a.m. while at a party, in a gang shootout that resulted in nine shots being exchanged by rival gangs in a late night battle in Toronto's embattled Finch corridor.

In the wake of Ephraim Brown's shooting death early yesterday, Michael Bryant said he will push Prime Minister Stephen Harper to ban handguns, tighten up the gun registry and safe storage rules, and enforce the provincial weapons program.

[...]

Thousands of guns are stolen every year and there are too many on Toronto's streets, he said. It's time to crack down on illegal gun traders and make it harder to get a handgun, Bryant said, adding he will ask the federal government for support in "closing the loopholes that exist to get a handgun."

"We need to choke off the gun supply from legal gun owners to illegal gun owners."

Hyperbole doesn't stop gang warfare, and neither does targeting citizens who play no part. Canada's firearms laws already impose heavy burdens on ordinary Canadians while leaving the criminal element untouched. Its already illegal to possess an unregistered handgun. Its already illegal to use a firearm in the commission of an offence. Its already illegal to break into someone's home and steal their guns. Its already illegal to shoot at someone not in self-defence.

"We need to choke off the gun supply from legal gun owners to illegal gun owners" is nothing more than a thinly veiled threat to confiscate the firearms of citizens under the pretense of "public safety". The firearms of lawful citizens are not now, nor have they ever been, the issue in gang warfare by Toronto's thugs and street gangs. "Thousands of guns are stolen..." -back that up with real stats, Mr. Bryant. Canada has thousands of unregistered handguns circulating, and that isn't ever going to change. What Bryant needs to focus on is policing and sentencing of gangs and their members for criminal activities. The necessary laws are on the books, Michael, you have to work a little harder and smarter to catch the perps, dude. My legal rightfully owned firearms are nobody's concern but mine.

Come the fall, Ontarioans need to put a party in place that gets the big picture. It should be clear to all that it isn't Dalton and Company (if anyone needs further evidence of the multi-culti hypocrisy of the Ontario Liberals this ought to help you with that. Spin-mode is at warp speed currently).

As for Miller - the constant harping about handguns is diverting him from tackling the real issues in Toronto. Or is that the plan? Could it be that Miller still has no idea for Toronto, beyond tilting at windmills and finding new taxes to burden its beleaguered citizens?

[Update] Arrest made, with more details.


[Update 2]"TORONTO (CP) — A 21-year-old man who police say is “extremely well known” as an active gang member has been arrested in the weekend shooting death of 11-year-old Ephraim Brown.

The Grade 6 student was killed in the crossfire of a suspected gang shootout early Sunday at a house party near Jane St. and Sheppard Ave.

The boy was struck in the neck by a stray bullet during the shooting and died at the scene shortly after police arrived.

His grieving sisters have appealed for their troubled community to take action and ensure that no more innocent lives are lost.

Det.-Sgt. Gary Giroux says he expects other arrests in relation to the shooting.

He appealed to the 50-70 other people at the party to come forward with any information. "I now expect the community to come forward," Giroux said.

Akiel Eubank, 20, of Toronto, was charged with first-degree murder after he arrived at a city hospital with a gunshot wound to the thigh.

The boy was one of four people killed by gunfire this weekend in separate incidents across the city; at least four other people were injured.

It’s the 43rd shooting death in Toronto this year."

[...]

12 Division
Community Bulletin – Oct. 1 st – 9 th
12 Division . Toronto Police Service . 416 808 1200 . 200 Trethewey Drive . Toronto . ON . M6M 5E6

ARREST OF THE WEEK:
SHARP EYED OFFICER ARRESTS MAN FOR A VICIOUS ASSAULT
AFTER HE INITIALLY ESCAPED CUSTODY OF ARRESTING COP:
It is alleged that: on August 4 th , the accused male along with several others entered Mario Bros. bar on Weston Road and attacked a patron, beating and stabbing him. The victim was able to identify the accused and a warrant was taken out for his arrest by 12 Division. On Monday, September 25 th , the accused was spotted by an alert uniformed officer who attempted to place the accused under arrest. A brief struggle ensued and the accused managed to make good his escape after assaulting the officer. The officer again located the accused on Monday, October 2 nd , and on this occasion, made sure that he was not taken by surprise. He was able to place the accused under arrest without further incident. He was taken to the station where he was charged accordingly and held in custody pending a mandatory bail hearing.

Arrested: EUBANK Akiel Tafari, 20 years of Toronto
Charge: Assault with Intent to Resist Arrest
Escape Lawful Custody
Fail to Comply – Probation
Assault with a Weapon
Weapons Dangerous
Assault
Threatening Death

So an escaped crook with a long list of serious charges, including assault with a weapon, threatening death etc, and escape lawful custody, is back on the street, to be accused of using a firearm again, this time with deadly consequences?

Bryant, Miller, save your pedantic rhetoric about the "evils of guns", and get on with doing your job of incarcerating criminals, and keep them there. While you're at it, support federal initiatives for tougher sentences. Had you done so earlier, Ephraim Brown might be alive. His blood is on your hands, not the hands of hundreds of thousands of lawful firearms owners.