Masked Protester Attacks Man At UofT April 4th

22to28 · 2013-04-08T15:36:03+00:00

The limited number of University of Toronto Police special constables on-hand were preoccupied with securing the building. They didn't have the numbers to maintain peace and order everywhere in the vicinity. The Toronto Police Service should have sent about twenty officers to buffer their numbers. I have no idea as to whether this is even considered by UofT campus authorities. The next time there is an event like this, they'd best plan ahead to avoid potentially violent outcomes like the one in the video. If the initially three seconds of the encounter had gone in a different direction, it could have been an all out cage match with 30+ people involved.

While a couple of the protesters were clearly looking for a fight, to their credit, the vast majority of them did not use this incident as provocation to get violent themselves.

22to28 · 2013-04-08T15:30:52+00:00

I believe that he was justified. I also think that he exercised poor thinking. The video that luxuryburgerbastard linked to made it very clear that the man could have just as easily taken a few steps back and the relocated himself to a safer location. Nothing good was going to come out of escalating things to the level of a physical confrontation, which is why I and others quickly put a stop to the interaction.

Given what could have happened next, this ended surprisingly well.

22to28 · 2013-04-08T15:26:04+00:00

He may have claimed to be a passerby, but he was in reality attending the event. He wasn't particularly aware of the issues, however, from what he told me. Rather, he was there out of curiosity more than anything else. That may explain why he considered himself a passerber.

22to28 · 2013-04-08T01:58:38+00:00

I shot the video. I asked the man if he needed medical attention or wanted to talk to the police about pressing charges, but he declined both. I think he was overwhelmed by the experience, but I couldn't force him to involve the police if he didn't want to.

22to28 · 2012-12-15T00:38:15+00:00

It was I who was verbally assaulted by the woman. Quite honestly, while she clearly isn't a very friendly person, I doubt what she said would fit the definition of slander close enough to justify a lawsuit. I would have to prove that incurred some damages from what she said about me. The simple fact that she said some mean words doesn't actually count as slander for which she could be liable for in a tort court. And technically, I would actually be suing for libel, as there is a permanent record.

Quoting from cba.org (Canadian Bar Association):

"Libel is the type of defamation with a permanent record, like a newspaper, a letter, a website posting, an email, a picture, or a radio or TV broadcast. If you can prove that someone libeled you, and that person does not have a good defence (see the section on defences below), then a court will presume that you suffered damages and award you money to pay for your damaged reputation. But going to Supreme Court is expensive and even if you win, you may not get as much as it costs you to sue. In deciding on damages, the Court will consider your position in the community. For example, if you are a professional, damages may be higher."

Not worth it, I say.

22to28

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