Police board chair 'regrets reaction' caused by Facebook post on police brutality

The chair of the Toronto Police Services Board says he “regrets the reaction” caused by a Facebook post highlighting police brutality in the United States.

Earlier Friday, the union representing Toronto police officers demanded Alok Mukherjee resign for posting the photo. The picture, which is no longer visible on his Facebook page, is made up of three images saying, “Americans killed by ISIS: 3, Americans killed by Ebola: 2, Americans killed by the police: 500+ every year.” At the bottom of the photo is more type that says, “Just a reminder who the enemy is in this world. #ShutItDown #BlackLivesMatter #YaMeCanse #WeAreTired.”

The snapshot, which was included in a press release issued by the Toronto Police Association late Friday morning, shows the photo was shared Thursday from the Occupy Wall St. Facebook page. Above the photo is a typed quote saying, “I can’t breathe.” Those were the words uttered by Eric Garner, a black man who died after being put in a chokehold by New York City police officers on July 17. In a YouTube video that showed the arrest, Garner can be heard saying, “I can’t breathe” while officers pinned him to the ground. He died shortly afterwards in hospital. His death and the grand jury’s decision not to indict the officers involved have sparked large protests across the U.S. this week.

Mukherjee released a statement Friday afternoon saying he shared the item to generate discussion and has the “utmost respect” for Toronto police.

“I would like to make it very clear that the item was shared as a topic of interest, intended to encourage conversation and reflection. It was not intended to be a negative commentary in any way on members of our police service or on our practices,” the statement says.

“I am very proud of our approach to policing, our practice of continuously learning from our experience, our systems of accountability and the efforts we make to maintain positive relations with our community,” it continues.

“I take every opportunity to celebrate the work our police officers do to keep our communities safe and to build good relations in our neighbourhoods. I have the utmost respect for members of the Toronto Police Service and I strive at all times to serve as Chair in a fair and professional matter,” it says.

The Toronto Police Association, who is in the middle of contract negotiations with the board, said earlier Friday that the photo represents a “lack of objectivity” on Mukherjee’s part.

In a statement released late Friday afternoon, Toronto Police Association President Mike McCormack then called Mukherjee’s explanation “implausible.”

“If Mukherjee's true intention was to “encourage conversation and reflection”, he would not have shared such an inflammatory and inappropriate post,” McCormack wrote. “In posting this on Facebook Mukherjee lifted the curtain on his personal views. He knows that the place to have meaningful discussions on important police issues is at the table of the police services board and not in social media.”

In a news release issued earlier Friday, the union slammed the post as “unprofessional” and “clearly unethical,” saying it “clearly seeks to undermine the very people he is paid to oversee.”

The release also indicated that a letter of complaint would be filed with Ontario’s premier, solicitor general, the Toronto Police Services Board, the Ontario Civilian Police Commission and Toronto Mayor John Tory.

Tory called Mukherjee’s actions “regrettable” but wouldn’t comment on whether the chair should resign from his position.

McCormack, meanwhile, told CP24 Friday afternoon that officers want to ensure they will be treated fairly.

“Here we have somebody who is the head of civilian oversight for the Toronto Police Services and this demonstrates a clear lack of judgment, ethical and moral. It is clear bias against the police and we are not looking for special treatment or anything; we are just looking for fair treatment.”

“We put in a formal complaint to have this investigated on all the facts and lets let the facts come out and have appropriate action done,” he added.

One councillor who used to sit on the Toronto Police Services Board with Mukherjee came to his defence.

"It's not surprising they would call for his resignation. It's in their best interest to create a storm where there isn't one," said Coun. Michael Thompson. "If Mukherjee were to compare police, he'd say Toronto has some of the best in the world."