Ontario Ombudsman Slams G20 Policing in Report

André Marin’s report shows that even the OPP thought the Toronto Police were abusing their power.

A report released by Ontario Ombudsman André Marin Tuesday didn’t contain much that wasn’t already known about policing at the G20. Marin found that both the police and the provincial government allowed the public to be misled into thinking officers had sweeping powers during the summit when in fact they did not. But perhaps more damning to Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, the report contains an internal email written by an OPP officer who said it would be inadvisable to hold a joint press conference with Blair because the Toronto Police had “made many mistakes” that the OPP should not be seen as tacitly endorsing. Marin also said that Blair had been completely uncooperative in compiling the report.