Toronto Unloaded

Now is the summer of our discontent made glorious winter by this sun of York...

Toronto's Year of the Gun, now being nearly three months behind us, still resonates in our collective memory. We're not soon to forget the blood on the streets, or the bullets firing in our public space. But, there is a light, however faint, beginning to pierce through the darkness.

This morning I discovered that the National Post is holding a promotion, and I was greeted at my doorstep with a free newspaper. I'm very happy about this, because I am going to have a BLAST this weekend, given the content in today's edition.

First, let's discuss what seems to be good news. It appears that Toronto is starting to make progress in our war against gun violence. The Post is reporting that:

"Since the beginning of this year, police have made 1,137 arrests and seized 83 firearms as part of a sweeping strategy to stop the violence plaguing the city. Homicide officers have made arrests in 10 of the 13 murders so far this year.

Additional officers on the street has meant a drop in the overall crime rate, down 7% between January and March from teh same period last year. And, most importantly, there have been only five gun murders in 2006, down from eight last year and 10 in 2004."

We are not at a celebratory stage just yet. Even Chief Blair is being cautiously optimistic about these numbers. He says, "I'm very convinced we are on the right track, that we have developed a comprehensive response to the gun violence. There's still a great deal of work to do, but we're seeing progress."

Still, this progess could very well be the calm before the storm. In fact, while there were only two shooting deaths between January 1st and February 6th, this was followed by three quick shootings in only eight days. Despite the contention of some that this has more to do with the weather than anything else (warmer weather provides access to more potential victims; high heat causes people to go mad and start killing each other), we should be careful not to spend too much time speculating over these kinds of theories. It's vitally important that we do not let down our guard.

To my mind, the most hopeful sign that I've seen is that there have been 10 arrests. This is largely due to the support of the public. I have noticed a much stronger willingness of people to come forward with information since the Boxing Day shooting of Jane Creba. I would attribute this shift to three things:

First, Creba was a wake up call. The fact that a gun fight took place in an open, public market by extremely brazen youth who cared nothing for human lives, shook the city to its knees. We felt, literally, that we were being held hostage to these thugs who act like they own the streets. People are starting to fight back.

Second, police are reaching out. They're increasing their numbers, which is helpful, but more important is the fact that they are connecting with people at street level. This is largely due to a cultural shift begun by Police Chief Blair, who has concluded that former methods were not working. Cops are now getting out of their cars and talking to folks living in previously abandonned communities. They're making lists, and they're checking them twice. Literally, they're distinguishing between naughty and nice. This is a much better approach than bulldozing into a neighbourhood, guns cocked, smashing in doors and pulling suspects out by their hair. Communities are far more willing to speak to police when they don't feel that they are being harassed. This doesn't mean they are being soft, using what former Chief Fantino used to call the "hug-a-thug" method of policing. They are stepping in where it's necessary to do so and making arrests. The community, in turn, feels like they're there to be helpful and to protect them, not to push them around.

Third, don't underestimate the power of faith groups. Church communities have a strong connection to people's sensibilities and with Pastors and Ministers reaching out to their congregations, instilling the notion of responsibility, family, and communication, has made its mark. Pastor Andrew King, as I've said before, is instrumental in this. And, despite some criticism from certain advocacy groups, the visit by Boston's Reverend Eugene Rivers caused bells to ring all over the GTA.

An example of how Toronto Police Service methods have responded to the crisis is in the establishment of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy (TAVIS). The strategy which pulls cops out of their cars and gets them walking into communities, stops groups of kids and asks them, "Are you in a gang? Do you know anybody in a gang? Do you know anybody who's in trouble and needs help?" This may be the best breakthrough in intelligence gathering police have had in years. Rather then paying off snitches and intimidating information out of unwilling informants, they're just having a conversation. It's paying off.

Now is the time to get real. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Remember the lessons learned in the Boston Miracle, where community type policing led to a dramatic decrease in crime, only to see the violence escalate after time. Why? Because the city became complaicent. They got too comfortable, laxed up a bit, and let things slide back into the gutter.

This we must avoid, at all costs.


Incidentally, here are a few links to some of the National Post stories currently in their on-line edition:

Toronto Unloaded: Kelly Patrick lists every homicide from January 1, 2005 to the present.

Highlights from Global series on Toronto's Most Wanted

New Division Gives Scarborough Hope: Story on Community Policing in Scarborough


COMING UP: Tomorrow I'll continue my National Post coverage, with a fresh look at the Sherry Cooper Home Invasion story.

This is going to be fun!