Convicted Toronto Police Officer Still Collecting Salary

A Toronto police officer who hasn’t worked a day in two years and was convicted of assaulting an innocent person is still making almost $70,000 a year.

Constable Roy Preston, 39, was found guilty on July 28, 2005 , of assaulting Said Jama Jama in a parking lot in Toronto in 2003. The incident was caught on tape and the officers involved had actually charged Jama Jama with assault until the video surfaced.

Preston served 2 days in jail and has spent the last two years sitting on his $67,000 a year salary waiting for his appeal. A city lawyer says the costs have been much more than that, however.

“Taxpayers paid for two prosecutions, pre-trial salary and post-trial salary and are continuing to pay him,” says Toronto lawyer Andrew Vaughn. “He’s had his legal fees paid and the taxpayer keeps on paying.”

Sources say taxpayers also paid between $70 and $100 thousand dollar damage settlement to Jama Jama, on top of legal fees. The decision to continue paying Preston was made by Toronto police chief Bill Blair, stated Toronto police staff superintendent Tony Corrie. 

“That is a decision the chief made and I believe he wanted to know all the circumstances and that was his decision at the time,” says Corrie.

A Superior Court judge is scheduled to hear Preston’s appeal on Sept. 13.

If the conviction is upheld, Preston could file appeals with the Ontario Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada.

His legal fees are paid by the Toronto police union and internal disciplinary charges against Preston are on hold until the appeal process is exhausted.