This cop didn’t use her gun, handcuffs or Taser to send a message to a citizen who got under her skin.
She used her middle finger!
But when she did it, she didn’t realize that who she was flipping the bird to was a former Toronto Police officer himself.
Nothing stirs the pot worse. It may have been time for a coffee break for these cops, but this eyewitness was not going to cut them a break for where they parked their squad car.
It seems when it comes to coffee, Toronto Police once again got burned on social media.
First, earlier this year, police were lambasted for delivering anti-Israel/pro-Palestinian protesters coffee on a bridge over Highway 401, and now it’s for getting themselves one.
Or make that several — Starbucks lattes, to be precise, one of them of the green matcha kind.
The problem is not as much the java break but both their alleged illegal parking and their response when an irate and impatient citizen called them out.
This viral video has sparked a lot of conversation.
“It was harassment,” Premier Doug Ford told reporters of the video recording. “Let’s support our police. Next time you’re at a coffee shop, I’ll go in and buy you a coffee”
Toronto Police Association president Jon Reid told CP24 the person who recorded the incident was “baiting” the officers.
“We’ve had countless examples recently of officers being videotaped, being treated very, very poorly,” Reid told the news station. “I’ll be honest, it gets frustrating. And I can only assume that maybe this was a very human reaction on the part of this officer.”
Well, the Toronto Sun has learned that the guy on the receiving end of the finger who was heckling the police officers is a former 24-year Toronto Police officer who just didn’t like the optics of officers walking back to a parked squad car carrying high-end Starbucks lattes and said he just reacted.
“It had nothing to with my feelings toward them personally,” said the former officer, who told the Sun he has been receiving threats and for now is going to keep his name anonymous.
It all started in 51 Division this week at King and Ontario Sts. when two officers were caught on video parking on a side street and allegedly blocking the roadway while they went in for their treat.
“I have a question for you guys,” said the man who recorded the encounter with his phone. “Are you guys allowed to park in a loading zone (when there is) no parking (and) everybody else gets screwed with tickets.”
A male officer responded, “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” said the befuddled video recorder. “So if I parked there how much would my ticket be?”
A female officer calmly replied, “I hear where you are coming from” and tried to explain how busy they are as a rationale for the special break.
“Don’t copslain to me,” said the man. “You guys shouldn’t be doing this.”
When she tried to explain further, the man said, “You are brand new. You are right out of the collage so I don’t want to hear from you.”
The officer said she could tell he had been “screwed” over by another officer: “You are obviously bitter and have had a bad experience and I apologize for that.”
But this man, who admits he does have some bitterness about what he experienced by a peer who he alleges assaulted him while on the job, was not in a forgiving mood.
“You guys got to learn, man,” said the YouTuber who goes under the handle MadLabPress and films his encounters with special stealth camera glasses. “You have to respect the public more.”
The whole encounter was pretty even in terms of points of view. The citizen had a point and so did the officer.
Then the coffee got spilled with what happened next.
When the officers were finally in the car and driving off, the female officer said they were just “doing our job, bro” to which the offended man said, “I’m not your bro.”
His video then catches the female officer extending her middle finger in the universal language that all clearly understand.
And just like that, she has found herself the subject of a Toronto Police Professional Standards investigation.
“We can’t speak to the specifics of the incident captured in the circulating video,” said Toronto Police spokesperson Shannon Eames. “But we acknowledge that the officer’s response was not appropriate.”
That said, it’s understandable. She tried to reason with the man and just lost her cool when he was having none of it. She’s only human.
Even the former cop doesn’t want her to be in trouble.
It certainly doesn’t rise to the level of a need for Professional Standards to investigate but acts as another reminder to police to remember that everything they do now is scrutinized and recorded.
The citizen was certainly entitled to his view — which many who have received no break for their parking decisions sympathize with. His aggressive approach may have been a bit over the top but he didn’t break any rules.
I don’t like it when police are rude to citizens or when citizens are rude to police, who just this past week have been hurt during these kinds of interactions and even shot. Remember, they are citizens too. Moms, dads and taxpayers.
Failing governments often cause a lot of these issues and push these problems down onto the cop in the street and that is not fair.
At a time when people are yelling about intifada and when parking ticket fines have recently gone up significantly, there is going to be pushback from a frustrated citizenry who feel besieged with rules and regulations and fines and are fed up with the double standards.
Still, an officer flips the finger and they are going to be held to account for it. Theirs is a tough job in which they are faced with rude people and dangerous situations all shift.
The solution? Everybody should sit down, have a coffee and talk it out calmly.
But make sure everybody is legally parked first.
Or make that several — Starbucks lattes, to be precise, one of them of the green matcha kind.
The problem is not as much the java break but both their alleged illegal parking and their response when an irate and impatient citizen called them out.
This viral video has sparked a lot of conversation.
“It was harassment,” Premier Doug Ford told reporters of the video recording. “Let’s support our police. Next time you’re at a coffee shop, I’ll go in and buy you a coffee”
Toronto Police Association president Jon Reid told CP24 the person who recorded the incident was “baiting” the officers.
“We’ve had countless examples recently of officers being videotaped, being treated very, very poorly,” Reid told the news station. “I’ll be honest, it gets frustrating. And I can only assume that maybe this was a very human reaction on the part of this officer.”
Well, the Toronto Sun has learned that the guy on the receiving end of the finger who was heckling the police officers is a former 24-year Toronto Police officer who just didn’t like the optics of officers walking back to a parked squad car carrying high-end Starbucks lattes and said he just reacted.
“It had nothing to with my feelings toward them personally,” said the former officer, who told the Sun he has been receiving threats and for now is going to keep his name anonymous.
It all started in 51 Division this week at King and Ontario Sts. when two officers were caught on video parking on a side street and allegedly blocking the roadway while they went in for their treat.
“I have a question for you guys,” said the man who recorded the encounter with his phone. “Are you guys allowed to park in a loading zone (when there is) no parking (and) everybody else gets screwed with tickets.”
A male officer responded, “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” said the befuddled video recorder. “So if I parked there how much would my ticket be?”
A female officer calmly replied, “I hear where you are coming from” and tried to explain how busy they are as a rationale for the special break.
“Don’t copslain to me,” said the man. “You guys shouldn’t be doing this.”
When she tried to explain further, the man said, “You are brand new. You are right out of the collage so I don’t want to hear from you.”
The officer said she could tell he had been “screwed” over by another officer: “You are obviously bitter and have had a bad experience and I apologize for that.”
But this man, who admits he does have some bitterness about what he experienced by a peer who he alleges assaulted him while on the job, was not in a forgiving mood.
“You guys got to learn, man,” said the YouTuber who goes under the handle MadLabPress and films his encounters with special stealth camera glasses. “You have to respect the public more.”
The whole encounter was pretty even in terms of points of view. The citizen had a point and so did the officer.
Then the coffee got spilled with what happened next.
When the officers were finally in the car and driving off, the female officer said they were just “doing our job, bro” to which the offended man said, “I’m not your bro.”
His video then catches the female officer extending her middle finger in the universal language that all clearly understand.
And just like that, she has found herself the subject of a Toronto Police Professional Standards investigation.
“We can’t speak to the specifics of the incident captured in the circulating video,” said Toronto Police spokesperson Shannon Eames. “But we acknowledge that the officer’s response was not appropriate.”
That said, it’s understandable. She tried to reason with the man and just lost her cool when he was having none of it. She’s only human.
Even the former cop doesn’t want her to be in trouble.
It certainly doesn’t rise to the level of a need for Professional Standards to investigate but acts as another reminder to police to remember that everything they do now is scrutinized and recorded.
The citizen was certainly entitled to his view — which many who have received no break for their parking decisions sympathize with. His aggressive approach may have been a bit over the top but he didn’t break any rules.
I don’t like it when police are rude to citizens or when citizens are rude to police, who just this past week have been hurt during these kinds of interactions and even shot. Remember, they are citizens too. Moms, dads and taxpayers.
Failing governments often cause a lot of these issues and push these problems down onto the cop in the street and that is not fair.
At a time when people are yelling about intifada and when parking ticket fines have recently gone up significantly, there is going to be pushback from a frustrated citizenry who feel besieged with rules and regulations and fines and are fed up with the double standards.
Still, an officer flips the finger and they are going to be held to account for it. Theirs is a tough job in which they are faced with rude people and dangerous situations all shift.
The solution? Everybody should sit down, have a coffee and talk it out calmly.
But make sure everybody is legally parked first.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.