Ontario opposition leaders are warning Premier Doug Ford against politicizing the justice system after a man whose bail he once publicly questioned was acquitted.
Umar Zameer was found not guilty of first-degree murder in the death of the Toronto police detective. Const. Jeffrey Northrup on Sunday after a five-week trial.
A jury heard he was with his pregnant wife and young son in a car park when plainclothes officers rushed the vehicle while investigating a stabbing in which he was not involved.
Zameer said he did not know the people approaching his vehicle were police officers and told the court he feared for his life and tried to flee.
Northrup was in his blind spot, the defense argued, and was hit.
The judge overseeing the trial questioned the testimony of officers at the scene and suggested that, based on expert testimony, Northrup was not standing in the middle of the street and not visible to Zameer as the Crown claimed.
The jury agreed and Judge Anne Molloy offered an apology as she left the courtroom.
Zameer’s case attracted immediate attention from politicians following the 2021 incident.
When he was released on bail there was a public outcry, and Ford Posting on social media the decision was “beyond comprehension.”
“It is completely unacceptable that the person accused of this heinous crime is now out on bail,” he wrote on X. “Our justice system needs to get its act together and start putting victims and their families ahead of criminals.”
Then-Mayor John Tory echoed the statement, saying publicly that it was “almost impossible to imagine a circumstance in which a defendant in a first-degree murder case would be granted bail.”
Speaking to reporters on Monday, New Democratic Party leader Marit Stiles said she is thinking of the two families affected.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate to politicize the tragedy that we saw unfold here,” he said. “I hope that if the Prime Minister learns anything from this, it is that it is better not to try to politicize a case that is ongoing.”
Liberal parliamentary leader John Fraser suggested Ford should apologize for making the comment in the first place.
“We keep our politicians, our judges and our judicial system separate. We do it for a reason. For the Prime Minister and I think John Tory to comment on that, a specific case, was wrong, totally wrong.”
Fraser went on to suggest Ford made the comment to “chase headlines” and that Ontarians should be concerned about the premier’s use of phrases like “like-minded judges” after this case.
“So I guess what he means by that is people who would be willing not to listen to the evidence. “It’s a big concern,” Fraser said. “It’s not our job. It’s not our business. “We don’t need to politicize the courts.”
Ford has been widely criticized for appoint registered lobbyists to a committee that recommends judgessaying he did it because he wanted like-minded people in the roles.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association, as well as opposition parties, have said judicial appointments remain non-partisan.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Abby O’Brien