Charges stayed against 3 Toronto cops in alleged shakedown scheme
Posted December 7, 2009 11:12 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Corruption charges have been stayed against three Toronto police officers, including the son of the city’s former police chief, who said the ruling upheld his faith in the justice system.
William McCormack Jr. and former police union boss Rick McIntosh were accused of accepting money from bars in return for warnings about raids.
Superior Court Justice Bonnie Croll today stayed the charges against the two men and a third officer, George Kouroudis, because of delays in bringing the case to trial.
All McCormack would say following the ruling was “I’m fine.”
His lawyer, Jay Naster, welcomed the decision.
“We are obviously relieved at the outcome and very appreciative to the courage that her honour has shown in making this decision today,” Naster said.
The charges were laid in the wake of an investigation that led to allegations that cops were taking bribes from downtown clubs.
The charges against McCormack, the son of former police chief Bill McCormack, and the others included influence peddling and breach of trust.
“Every case has its own particular challenges and there were aspects of this case that were particularly complex, perhaps more so than others,” said special prosecutor Jeffrey Manishen.
“I have been involved in wiretap cases myself in the past. But there were aspects of this case that happened to be more complex.”
The elder McCormack was on hand for the ruling.
“During my 41 years in policing, I’ve always had faith in the administration of justice,” he said.
“Justice has just been spoken just now. My faith has still been upheld.”
