Murder trial in death of constable begins
The long-awaited trial of a man charged with running over Toronto police Const. Jeffrey Northrup on July 2, 2021, in the underground parking lot below Nathan Phillips Square is set to begin on Monday with jury selection.
Umar Zameer, 34, is charged with first-degree murder in relation to the death of Northrup, 55, who was working in plainclothes with other officers investigating a stabbing that evening.
Police have alleged Northrup was intentionally struck by a vehicle driven by Zameer; because he was killed in the line of duty, Zameer was charged with first-degree murder. Thousands attended the funeral of the father of three, a 31-year force veteran.
There was an uproar when Zameer was released on bail in September 2021. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, former Toronto mayor John Tory and Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown were among those who expressed outrage over the judge’s decision.
That prompted Nader Hasan, who is representing Zameer, to seek the lifting of the standard publication ban placed on the judge’s bail decision.
At the subsequent hearing, Superior Court Justice Jill Copeland — who has since been elevated to the Court of Appeal for Ontario — declined the request to lift the ban, but noted that the evidence at the bail hearing and the anticipated trial evidence “paints a very different picture” than the “uninformed” public comments made by the police and politicians.
At the time, Copeland scolded politicians and other commentators for denigrating “the presumption of innocence and the fair operation of the criminal justice system.”
The case is being prosecuted by Michael Cantlon, who is the head Crown prosecutor in Toronto, and Karen Simone, both veterans of many high-profile trials at the downtown courthouse.
Justice Anne Molloy, who has also presided over many prominent cases, is the trial judge.
The last time someone stood trial for killing a Toronto police officer was Richard Kachkar who was homeless and barefoot and driving a stolen snow plow when he killed Sgt. Ryan Russell on Jan. 12, 2011.
Kachkar was originally charged with first-degree murder but was found not criminally responsible due to mental illness.