The lawyer for a Toronto cyclist who claims he ran off the road after being subjected to homophobic slurs has written an open letter to city council criticizing a recent increase in the city’s police budget and calling for improved cycling infrastructure.
The alleged incident, which took place on January 21, was captured on video and posted on social media.
“A cyclist was assaulted by a motorist, first with homophobic slurs, then ran off the road on Bathurst Street. The bicyclist crashed and suffered a head injury as a result,” said the letter, written by attorney Dave Shelnut of The Biking Lawyer LLP.
“An eyewitness caught the driver’s license plate as he drove off and confirmed to police that the driver intentionally swerved into the cyclist.”
The video appears to show the cyclist swerving into the right lane of Bathurst Street, as if trying to avoid a driver.
Moments later, a vehicle pulls up next to the cyclist, causing him to crash and fall to the pavement. The vehicle is then seen driving away at a high rate of speed.
The letter states that seven days after the incident was reported, the Toronto police officer assigned to the case returned to the cyclist, informing them that the driver had been cited for “not allowing you to have the lane.”
But Shellnutt says police “did not determine that a collision had occurred” and therefore a “proper” motor vehicle accident report was not created.
“But for the intentional act of the driver using his vehicle to strike and/or run our client off the road, that bicyclist should not have taken evasive action and subsequently struck the curb,” he wrote.
“From the video and witness testimony, it appears that additional charges should have been brought against this dangerous driver. Including: willful act of violence/assault, passing within 1 metre, careless driving causing bodily harm and failure to remain. None of those charges were filed, nor was a comment provided by the officer regarding the hate speech.
The Toronto Police Service (TPS) did not immediately respond to CP24’s request for comment.
“As attorneys for the countless cyclists intentionally injured by drivers who are rarely charged/under-charged, it is astonishing to see the acts of violence on the TTC used to justify expanded police and policing budgets in the midst of the TPS budget being debated by council,” the letter said.
“We see an endless stream of violence on our streets with none of this performative mobilization of the police force used by TPS and Mayor Tory to justify budget increases.”
The letter goes on to say that the solution to road violence against cyclists is to build additional safe infrastructure such as Yonge Street bike lanes, automated ticketing and investment in mental health support.
“We need bold leadership to address the systemic problems of violence and inequality in our society, not more police,” the letter said.
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