Scanned copy, if there are errors, please e-mail me with corrections:
Opening comments: More at the end. The use of False or Misleading Video Evidence by Toronto police. In this case the misuse of the videos' that police shot of public gatherings to charge a person. This is the dark or evil side of the police video taping the public whenever they care to. This case is very clear in the details, the video tape and other evidence should have removed the man charged from suspicion but the police used the video tape for doing evil. The video tape shows no reason why the person should be arrested and charged but does show that he was there, that is enough to build a lie around. The Toronto police are known to me as a group that will try to rule by fear and terror and one way to do that is charge people for good reason. To better make others fearful of exercising in their Democratic rights and responsible to protest injustice.
Toronto Star Oct. 11-03 - By DAVID BRUSER, STAFF REPORTER Protester cleared in assault After criticizing detectives for poor investigative techniques and underscoring the prosecution's flimsy evidence, a judge has dismissed the case against a pro-Palestinian protester accused of assaulting a Toronto heart surgeon. Murad Ebeid, 39, who is a safety marshal at pro-Palestinian demonstrations, had pleaded not guilty to assault causing bodily harm. The judge-alone trial in the Ontario Court of Justice lasted two days. Mr. Justice David Fairgrieve issued the ruling yesterday, immediately after the crown and defence presented their closing statements. Dr. Bernard Goldman, 67, was leaving Chapters bookstore on Bloor St. W. when he noticed what he called an "intense" pro-Palestinian demonstration marching east. Goldman testified he was assaulted after calling out "stop the suicide bombing." Relying on a police videotape of the march, Goldman later identified Ebeid as the man who grabbed and shoved him against a car, causing a fractured shoulder. The tape did not capture the alleged assault. But Ebeid, speaking through an interpreter, testified he never strayed from his position in the protest line and never had any contact with Goldman. "This never happened, not with Mr. Goldman or anyone else," he testified. On the night of March 30, 2002, just hours after the incident, Goldman told police that his attacker weighed about 150 pounds and had a beard, according to an officer's testimony. But he later told police in a written statement that he thought the attacker was stocky, stood about 6 feet tall, weighed 200 pounds and had a moustache, which roughly fits Ebeid's description, the court heard. Goldman testified he was "reasonably confident" he identified the right man. But Fairgrieve wasn’t convinced. "Honest witnesses make mistakes he said. "The question is: How reliable is the evidence?" The judge added, "It's obvious Mr. Ebeid does not and did not have a beard." Fairgrieve also criticized detectives for their investigation. Detective Thomas Hancock testified he lost two notepads that contained notes he wrote about the case. Fairgrieve also wondered why the police didn’t ask Goldman about the discrepancies in his two physical descriptions. Sergeant Stephen Irwin, who monitors public demonstrations, testified for the defence that Ebeid played a role in "keeping the community lawful, peaceful, co-operative, I suppose."
[COMMENTS BY DON B. - ]
|