Skip to Content
Streetsblog San Francisco home
Streetsblog San Francisco home
Log In
Streetsblog USA

Two Drivers Jump Sidewalk in Toronto, Injure 10 — Cops Blame Pedestrians

Today in police behaving badly, this madness from Toronto...

false

Ten people were injured -- including six pedestrians -- following a collision in which two drivers jumped the curb. The crash was found to be caused by an "illegal road manuver" on the part of one of the drivers. But that didn't stop Toronto Police Constable Hugh Smith from blaming pedestrians. In a Toronto Star report on the incident, Smith pointed to a lack of understanding about pedestrian countdown timers.

The article dwells at length on the constable's concerns about pedestrians.

“We’re finding down there is people aren’t paying attention to the countdown timers,” Smith told the newspaper. “A lot of people take it for granted.”

In response, Toronto resident Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip is circulating a petition. He says this isn't an isolated incident, but part of a pattern of victim-blaming by Toronto law enforcement. Police have suggested that pedestrians take extreme measures to protect their safety, Mueller-Heaslip says, including wearing bright colors or walking along the edge of the sidewalk farthest away from traffic.

"Blaming people for engaging in perfectly legal behaviour normalizes the dangerous and illegal behaviour of others," Mueller-Heaslip writes. "It suggests that non-drivers must go to extreme and unreasonable lengths to protect themselves from others’ recklessness."

As of Monday afternoon, more than 200 people had signed.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog San Francisco

Op-Ed: It’s Time to Extend the Central Subway to North Beach

There are abandoned tunnels under Stockton Street: here’s how they could transform San Francisco’s subway system.

May 8, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: ‘Normal’ is Not Correct, Someone Died Here

After a crash, the debris is quickly cleaned up and everyone moves on (usually too quickly). But these two experts are asking us to all slow down.

May 8, 2025

LA Metro Names Former SFPD Chief Bill Scott as Chief of Police

Chief Scott and Metro leadership emphasized that keeping Metro transit safe would require a multi-faceted approach that included the deployment of officers as well as collaboration with the community, ambassadors, and service providers. "Sometimes enforcement is the answer," Scott said. "Sometimes it's not."

May 7, 2025
See all posts