TORONTO — An Ontario judge who reviewed the province's regulations around police street checks says officers should only be stopping people for questioning if they have a clearly defined reason for doing so.
Justice Michael Tulloch says misinformation and confusion over the years have led to many people believing that street checks are synonymous with random, sometimes racially based police stops known as carding.
Tulloch says carding is a specific subset of street checks that should be stopped, as it disproportionately impacts racialized communities and does not help police fight crime.
But he says non-random street checks have real value for investigators and should be allowed to continue as long as officers have clear grounds for why they're being conducted.
Tulloch was appointed by the previous Liberal government to assess whether rules around street checks were being applied fairly.
The new Progressive Conservative government has said it plans to review those regulations and will be guided by Tulloch's findings.
Tulloch said clearing up widespread misunderstanding around street checks is the first, essential step, adding the difference boils down to police motivation.
"It is far better to use our limited resources to focus on individuals who are reasonably suspected of committing an offence rather than using valuable manpower to question thousands of people not reasonably suspected of anything," Tulloch said at a news conference detailing his 310-page report in which he conclusively calls for an end to random carding.
Tulloch's support for non-random street checks was echoed by the Police Association of Ontario, who also said valid police stops had become synonymous with carding.
"It is most unfortunate that, over time, the intended purpose and its effectiveness as a crime prevention and solvency practice has been lost," Association President Bruce Chapman said in a statement.
"As a serving police officer for over 35 years, I can truly attest to the value that this tool provides to an investigation. That being said, the PAO has been clear that our members have never and will never support the practice of arbitrary detention or racially-biased stops."