Chief Blair releases TPS ‘After-Action Report’ on G20 policing

The Toronto Police Service (TPS) released a comprehensive review of its G20 policing on Thursday.

The 70-page “After Action” report found that rampant vandalism took place because Toronto Police lacked the ability to respond quickly enough and some officers weren’t properly trained in riot squad techniques.

It was “the first time that many TPS officers had experienced widespread criminality and mass public disorder,” the report read.

“The scope and intensity of the disorder were without precedent in the history of the TPS.”

Defence attorney Clayton Ruby was quick to criticize the report Thursday night. 

“They spent a billion dollars, it is not possible for them to be overwhelmed,” he said.  “…come on, my daughter could do better.”

The report also noted that while many G8/G20 host cities are given up to two years to prepare for a summit, the TPS executed the “largest security event in Canadian history” in a span of just six months.

“…the TPS was successful in fulfilling its mission to support the RCMP and their mandate of ensuring the safety and security of the G8/G20 Summits delegations,” the report stated. “At no time was security breached at any of the G20 Summit sites.”

It went on to note that there were no critical injuries or deaths although 39 out of 1118 arrested reported injuries.  Ninety-seven police officers were also hurt in the course of their duties. 

Policing throughout the city was maintained at a high level, the document stressed, despite the heavy demands on manpower the Summit required.

The mass ”kettling” arrests that took place on Sunday, June 27, 2010, at the intersection of Queen and Spadina mark the need to improve training “so that the TPS can more effectively respond to criminal activity and public disorder while at the same time allowing individuals to protest peacefully,” the report further stated.

While the group of protesters boxed in on Sunday were initially deemed ‘peaceful’, reports of Black Bloc members infiltrating the group led to the kettling directive from the Major Incident Command Centre (MICC).

The G20 secret law that came under fire from Ontario ombudsman Andre Marin, who called it “the most massive compromise of civil liberties in Canadian history,” was also part of the review.

According to the report, Toronto police asked for legal authority from the provincial government to demand information and accreditation for those entering the fenced summit area under the Public Works Protection Act (PWPA).    The Act was updated by the provincial government, but the changes were not made public and police were not informed until June 25 that they did not have the power to search anyone within five metres outside of the security fence.

“There were two people arrested under the authority of the PWPA,” the report said.

Management at the makeshift detention centre on Eastern Avenue was also addressed.

Many prisoners complained of cramped conditions, lack of food, water, medicine, and in some cases no access to a lawyer or a telephone call.

The facility was designed to hold 500 people, but was capable of detaining up to 750.

885 people were processed during the Summit.   

The mass arrests that marked the weekend proved problematic.

“…the massive influx of prisoners, all within a matter of hours, overwhelmed the single court services pre-booking officer,” the report stated, leading to a “breakdown in communication.”

The end result was long delays, up to 36 hours, before some prisoners were able to see a justice of the peace.  

“The ability to have lawyers present on a 24-hour basis should be considered for similar types of operations in the future,” the report stated.

Feeding delays also took place in the confusion.

“Prisoners were given food and water at all stages of their detention. At first, feeding was tracked on the prisoner tracking form. During the weekend, the large volume of prisoners along with the difficulties experienced with the tracking forms made it difficult to record each prisoner’s feeding.”

The report came up with numerous recommendations.  They include reviewing how to better manage Black Bloc tactics and developing a way to identify people in a crowd who threaten public safety. (Full list below)

Just days after the G20 summit in Toronto concluded, marking the largest mass arrests in Canadian history, police Chief Bill Blair promised that the TPS would review and report on all aspects of their policing.

“We feel it’s extremely important, with an event of this unprecedented size and complexity, to ensure that we examine everything we did and how we did it,” Blair said at the time. 

Former Toronto mayor John Sewell thinks Blair should step down.

“This is, in my opinion, a report that says, ‘We failed, we didn’t know what we were doing or how we were doing it.’  And sorry, that’s not good enough.” he said.

“(Blair) doesn’t talk about the systemic change that is really required in the police force so they start respecting peoples’ rights and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and that sort of thing.”

To read the full report, click here.

10 Key Recommendations:

1.) That the TPS prepare and train a cadre of major event specialists who can be mobilized and dedicated to supporting major events in the future with a more robust operational planning capacity.

2.) That the TPS conduct a training assessment and then implement a plan to ensure appropriate IMS (Incident Management System) training is provided to members.

3.) That the TPS develop a practical application of IMS and related public order practices in order to provide MICC (Major Incident Command Centre) personnel and field commanders with a clearer understanding of their roles, responsibilities and respective decision-making authorities.

4.) That the TPS conduct a review in relation to public order management to better manage Black Bloc (or similar) tactics, mass disorder and major events like the G8/G20 Summits.

5.) That the TPS develop and implement policies and procedures to identify, isolate, and extract individuals in a crowd who are believed to pose a threat to public safety.

6.) That Memoranda of Understanding for the intelligence function in events similar to the G8/G20 Summits be established to facilitate the effective flow of intelligence information.

7.) That the TPS research and develop facility and operational plans for large temporary detention centres for similar events.

8.) That the TPS enhance large event radio protocol, related procedures and training to improve communication discipline and effectiveness in future events.

9.) That the TPS develop issues management capacities to improve our abilities in the areas of public order operations, community mobilization, corporate communications, and media monitoring.

10.) That the risk management initiatives undertaken by the TPS both prior to and after the G20 Summit be used in future event planning.

Key Findings:

The Public Order Units ”(POU) lacked the mobility and speed to respond immediately to prevent further disorder that occurred as “radical elements” broke away from the main protest crowd at Queen Street West and Spadina Avenue on June 26, 2010.

“The POU needs to create deployment strategies to increase the mobility of POU sections and thereby enhance their ability to respond rapidly to fast-moving situations,” the report found.

The POUs need to develop “proactive strategies for use
in dynamic situations.”

Current training focuses primarily on the use of cordon formations, dispersals, arrest teams and other techniques devised to tackle crowds. In the future, police should consider the use of non-POU officers to patrol protests.

The Major Incident Command Centre used containment techniques on the G20 crowds, but members of the public not involved in disorderly conduct should have the right to leave the affected area.

“Such tactics need to include specific direction as to when they are to be used,” the report found.

With files from Canadian Press

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