The Toronto Star continues its steadfast devotion to stalking the police force’s every move
In its ongoing effort to burn all bridges with various police forces around the GTA, the Toronto Star is reporting that a man accused of serious drug charges is also a nine-year veteran of the Peel police. Unlike the paper’s G20 coverage, this is more proof of the paper’s ability to dredge up juicy stories than its proficiency at doing the cops’ work for them—the officer would have been facing charges whether the Star ran the story or not—but it’s also yet another example of the paper’s dogged commitment to taking law enforcement to task each and every time it slips up.
From the Star:
A news release, issued Saturday, reported that Darrell Beck, 32, of Lisle, Ont., was arrested at 8:48 p.m. Friday on suspicion of impaired driving and possession for the purpose of trafficking.
The OPP would not confirm the accused is in fact an officer, saying he wasn’t on duty when he was arrested.
“We normally don’t identify individuals by way of occupation,” said OPP spokesman Peter Leon. “The only time we would identify (an accused) is if it was one of our members that was arrested and charged for transparency reasons.”
The article also notes that only after “numerous inquiries” did the police admit that the perp in question is, in fact, a police officer (specifically, a member of the street crimes unit). Naturally, the news is a reminder of the ongoing and strained relationship between the police and the city’s largest newspaper, which has also published stories that led to assault charges against officers in the G20’s wake and taken on the SIU’s role of ensuring the police behave themselves. It may seem like the Star has it out for cops—but it does occasionally publish more friendly fare (really, who could forget Twitter cop?).
• Peel cop’s drug charges kept quiet [Toronto Star]
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