Ford, the TPS and the TPA have launched “an unprecedented attack on the justice system,” says a lawyer for Umar Zameer
His comments follow an OPP report clearing three TPS officers accused of lying under oath
Umar Zameer’s lawyer, Nader Hasan, slammed a recent OPP report, which cleared three Toronto officers of lying under oath.
At a press conference earlier today, Hasan called the report “An absolute basket of lies,” and argued that the OPP could not be trusted to investigate their municipal counterparts. “We expected the worst from police investigating other police,” he said. “But what we got was far worse.”
Related: An OPP investigation finds the TPS officers accused of lying in the trial of Umar Zameer innocent
Here’s the backstory. In July of 2021, Zameer struck and killed Toronto Police Service officer Jeffrey Northrup during a confrontation with four plainclothes cops in the underground parking garage at Nathan Phillips Square. Zameer was charged with first-degree murder but acquitted in August of 2024.
A key detail in his case was the position Northrup was in when he was struck. The three officers on the scene testified that Northrup was standing and visible to Zameer. However, two traffic reconstructionists—TPS staff sergeant Jeff Bassingthwaite for the prosecution and Barry Raftery for the defence—both determined that Northrup was already on the ground, indicating the collision could have been accidental.
In her decision, Justice Anne Molloy alleged that the three constables present at the scene had not only lied under oath but had colluded to do so. Police chief Myron Demkiw then invited the OPP to launch a criminal probe based on Molloy’s allegations.
The investigation, the results of which were released on Tuesday, concluded that Northrup was standing during the collision, aligning with the officers’ testimony and contradicting Molloy’s claim that they had lied to the court. Demkiw hailed the report as accurate and thorough, and Toronto Police Association president Clayton Campbell said it “vindicated” the officers. Campbell called on Molloy to apologize to the officers she accused, and Premier Doug Ford concurred.
At today’s press conference, Hasan called the remarks by Demkiw, Campbell and Ford “an unprecedented attack against the judiciary and against the administration of justice,” which amounted to “a chilling moment in the history of the Canadian justice system.” Hasan is now calling for an open, public inquiry into the entire matter.
Far from clearing the air and vindicating their officers, as the TPS would have hoped, the OPP’s report seems to have generated even more controversy.
Anthony Milton is a freelance journalist based in Toronto specializing in long-form magazine writing. He previously worked as an assistant editor at Toronto Life, where he launched the Front Row newsletter. He regularly contributes all sorts of stories to the magazine, including deep dives on sports, business and housing as well as short-form commentary on our ever-changing city, from its obsession with cherry blossoms to its maddening NIMBYism. His work has also appeared in Maclean’s, Ricochet, TVO, the Trillium and more.
