Morning Brew: Ford says Bill Blair politically motivated, cop sentenced for G20 assault, TTC free on NYE, tears at Const. Zivcic memorial, and a Winston Churchill statue
Rob Ford's hotly anticipated conversation with Conrad Black aired last night and was devoid of any real pressure from the former media baron. However, Ford accused Police Chief Bill Blair of having a vendetta against him, saying he was politically motivated in ordering Project Brazen 2. "If I've done something illegal ... arrest me," he said.
He also accused Star reporter Daniel Dale of "taking photos of little kids" during the 2012 "Fencegate" incident. Read out full round-up.
A Toronto police officer has been sentenced to 45 days in jail for assaulting G20 protestor Adam Nobody. Const. Babak Andalib-Goortani was convicted in September of assault with a weapon and for using excessive force during Nobody's arrest outside the Ontario legislature on June 26, 2010. He was immediately granted bail pending an appeal.
The TTC will again be free of charge on New Year's Eve thanks to Corby Spirit and Wine, the makers of Wiser's, Jameson, and Absolut Vodka, and who are probably the very people that got you drunk in the first place. As usual, subway service will be extended until 7 a.m. New Year's Day. Cheers to that.
Thousands of police officers from across the country gathered at the Toronto Congress Centre yesterday for the funeral of Const. John Zivcic, the police officer who died in a car crash last week responding to an emergency call. "He was authentic; what you see is what you got. He had tenderness, respect and courage," his brother, Tom Zivcic, said in tribute.
The statue of Winston Churchill in Nathan Phillips Square is on the move again. The statue of Britain's wartime prime minister, hands on hips, was shifted from the Queen West side of the square in the Fall to make way for a planned restaurant, which seems to have stalled.
Finally, the TTC has officially launched Wi-Fi at St. George and Bloor-Yonge stations. The wireless internet is available free of charge (as long as you don't mind watching an advert) and will eventually be rolled out across the subway. Plans to add cell reception appear to have stalled out.
IN BRIEF:
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.
Image: Ryan/blogTO Flickr pool.
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