Sammy Yatim's shooting death by former Toronto police officer a homicide, coroner's inquest finds
Sammy Yatim's shooting death by former Toronto police officer a homicide, coroner's inquest finds
Sammy Yatim's shooting death by a former Toronto police officer was a homicide, a coroner's inquest has found more than a decade after his death.
Yatim, 18 at the time, died in a downtown Toronto hospital after he was shot several times while alone on a streetcar and holding a small knife on July 27, 2013.
His cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest, the inquest has found.
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What the autotldr bot didn’t capture is this:
In 2016, the officer who shot him, then-Const. James Forcillo, was found not guilty of second-degree murder in connection with the first volley of bullets, which court heard was fatal. He was convicted of attempted murder for the second volley, which was fired when Yatim was already on the ground.
Forcillo was sentenced to six and a half years behind bars and was granted full parole in 2020.
I’m not entirely clear on where “homicide” falls on the “second-degree murder” / “attempted murder” scale, though. To me, homicide has always meant the murdery type of murder. What does it mean for Forcillo?
This is what I've been mostly asking myself since I've heard the homicide ruling. Forcillo has already been tried, convicted, and served his time. I have the most basic understanding of our laws, but he can't be recharged for the same crime? However, could the family sue him in, like, civil court or something, based on this new ruling?
This is the best summary I could come up with:
James Forcillo, was found not guilty of second-degree murder in connection with the first volley of bullets, which court heard was fatal.
The jury recommended the Ministry of the Solicitor General and all Ontario police services ensure or continue to ensure that bystander peer intervention training programs be both a mandatory component of officers' annual re-certification training and continually developed.
Training should focus on improving police culture and emphasize that officers should be made aware that they will not face repercussions if an intervention is warranted, jurors said, but also that those who fail to intervene could be accused of misconduct.
The jurors also recommended the Toronto Police Service consider the feasibility of instituting a quality assurance and audit position at every division, staffed by a police officer, to ensure "accountability, transparency and efficiency" of several compliance requirements, including reviewing body-worn camera footage.
And they recommended police services that provide body-worn cameras in Ontario should ensure all relevant footage captured is reviewed in every case where an officer completes a use-of-force report or is subjected to an internal or external conduct complaint.
"The death of Sammy Yatim in 2013 shaped policing for the next 10 years, and since that time, TPS has undergone significant changes in technology, training, governance and people.
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