05.10.2013 07:06 AM

You know, I think it should be okay to climb a tree

…but, apparently, it has become a criminal offence in Toronto.

Assaulting a kid with developmental issues, and breaking his collarbone, meanwhile – that should be illegal.

16 Comments

  1. Kevin T. says:

    Officer Bubbles 2: Officer Treefucker

  2. Glen says:

    Love this quote:

    “It’s rare. . . . I can certainly tell you we don’t line the officers up in the morning and say, ‘Now get out there and give tickets to guys in trees.’ ”

  3. Iris Mclean says:

    Had the tree climber given the cop a well deserved boot to the nuts, he’d go to jail.

  4. !o! says:

    “An obscure part of the Toronto Municipal Code states that, “No person shall in a park, unless authorized by permit, climb, move or remove the whole or any part of a tree, rock, boulder rock face or remove soil, sand or wood.””

    Hey, come over here sir. Let’s see those shoes…. yup… It looks like you’ve got some sand in your shoes. Planning on removing a little sand from the park were ya?

  5. Chris says:

    Shameful.

  6. crf says:

    Without video, he has no chance.

  7. A ticket for climbing a tree? CUFFING the kid when he was not resisting, committed no crime? Isn’t that assault? I was taught to respect Police as they did a tough job on all of our behalf. As a teen, I discovered that Police sometimes abused their position out of personal pique, or even laziness or indifference. I guess that today, with a cell phone camera in every persons pockets, the Police need to understand they are under a microscope. Too bad they all incurr contempt with this sort of behaviour, but the contempt is deserved in this case. I am guessing that is one cop who will be catching an earful from the Staff Sergeant, and colleagues.

  8. smelter rat says:

    Sadly, the cop won’t even get a reprimand for this. The kid is lucky he didn’t get charged with resisting arrest or being an accessory to terrorism.

  9. patrick says:

    Something is wrong with our police. Guns are too easily drawn since the police seem to be afraid to ruin their hair while dealing with the public. The “circle jerk” commendations as they praised themselves for their behaviour during G20. And behaving like thugs when talking would do.
    And I have never had a problem with the police and never been mistreated by them and been given breaks when I’ve made a mistake — and I still think this way.
    The boundary of behaviour for the police has moved and I would state that it is a step towards the hair trigger response. This doesn’t affect the majority,, because like the huge majority of anything are decent and honest, but it does give leeway to that headline grabbing minority who sit on the sharper trigger for an extreme response to confrontation.
    How this is fixed I don’t know.

  10. Iris Mclean says:

    Sadly, if there is a settlement in favour of the victim, it will be payed by the taxpayers… not two-bit thug who assaulted him.

  11. Al in Cranbrook says:

    OT, but…

    Looks like Election Day here in BC is going to get seriously interesting. NDP – 43% BC Libs – 41% Conservative vote is evaporating.

    http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05/10/b-c-election-poll/

    • deb s says:

      polls have been wrong alot these days…I cant wait until tuesday. If Clarke wins…Im demanding a recount:)

    • !o! says:

      Forum.

      They always have the liberals high in BC, by like 5% or more relative to other polls.

      Also important to realize that Liberal support in BC is only efficient in the interior, whereas most seats are in the southwest.

  12. Bruce A says:

    Whatever happened to talking to people and giving a warning or explaining a law?

    Whatever happened with trying to be, well, a responsible citizen. Cops are citizens and representatives of the state and they should act like ones. The public is not your enemy. They’re also role models, whether they like it or not.

    This individual through his actions has put needless pressure on the health care system and now the justice system. If I was an ER doctor or Crown Prosecutor, I’d be ticked.

    Thanks for making their job, just a little more difficult. Thanks for creating busy work for them. Thanks for wasting tax dollars because some kid climbed a tree. Thanks for not doing your job.

    Further, why is climbing a tree illegal? Toronto the Good is an understatement.

    There are certain people who should never be cops and this is one of them. Sorry to say but I have lost respect for the police over the years. It’s always a 50/50 proposition as to who you deal with but bad experiences stick.

    I am beginning to wonder how many cops are on ‘roids because it sure sounds like this guy was looking for a fight when you consider he allegedly said, “You took too long to get out of the tree.” The cop is lucky this person didn’t use him to break his fall.

    Here’s a good example about dealing with people:

    http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/05/10/saskatoon_police_mourn_homeless_man_they_arrested_as_many_as_1000_times.html

  13. Elizabeth says:

    Anything that encourages people to interact with living trees should be considered a boon to nature. If the kid was not harming the tree by breaking branches, then a talking to would suffice. I have seen kids climbing young trees in the school yard near our house, and I’d like to yell at them because they are breaking the branches and harming the trees, it’s amazing that they’re still struggling along – but it’s up to the teachers.

    However, if the tree is sturdy enough to support climbing, it’s maybe going to turn that person into a tree-lover and we need all of those that we can get. Maybe the police should have sent him on a tree-planting course, not for a lumber company but for the city parks, or some kind of consciousness-raising seminar.

    Have to roll one’s eyes sometimes at what goes on in Toronto. Hate to brag but all my encounters with Calgary police have been amazingly positive.

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