Toronto cop injured cyclist then issued them a ticket for something totally legal

A Toronto cyclist who alleges they were doored by a police officer, only to be blamed for the collision, is raising concerns about what their lawyer characterizes as potential bias in the handling of traffic incidents involving cyclists by local law enforcement.

The incident occurred in July 2025 on King St. W., and according to personal injury lawyer and cycling safety advocate David Shellnutt, who is representing the cyclist's legal claim, the victim suffered a "serious" hand injury after allegedly being struck by an officer. The cyclist was later cited for speeding and not wearing a helmet. 

Shellnutt emphasizes that it is not against the law for anyone over the age of 18 to ride a bicycle without a helmet in Ontario, calling the validity of the citation into question.

According to Shellnutt, body camera footage obtained by his office allegedly shows the injured cyclist asking for a bottle of water to clean a hand wound and drink. Shellnutt says officers laughed and told the cyclist to go to a nearby Starbucks for a glass of water.

Shellnutt alleges that this is not the first time the officer involved, identified as Constable Andrade, has been implicated in questionable handling of cyclist collisions. He says that, one year prior, Andrade issued a helmet ticket – despite it not being a legal requirement – to another one of his clients who was seriously injured after being hit by a left-turning vehicle in a bike lane.

David Shellnut

Shellnutt says that in that case, "The real charges against the driver who permanently disabled my client were dropped because TPS made an error and messed up on getting the disclosure."

Shellnutt says he received the police report, officer notes, and some video through a Freedom of Information request, but no footage of the offending officer or the car camera.

David Shellnutt

The report blamed his client for "riding too fast for the condition," though Shellnutt argues the driver who opened their door into traffic is at fault under the Highway Traffic Act.

"It's really upsetting to my client, and I think to cyclists across Toronto, that there's an officer out there with a clear anti-cyclist bias," he says, adding that he has launched a lawsuit against TPS and is considering filing a formal police complaint as well.

These two incidents, Shellnutt says, reflect a wider anti-cyclist bias he and others have long been warning about, not only within the Toronto Police Service but across police forces in Ontario.

"We want the bias addressed, and we also want to tone down the rhetoric of enforcement against cyclists. We want TPS to support injured people," Shellnutt says.

He notes that not all officers exhibit misconduct.

"There are certainly a few good apples at TPS," Shellnutt says. "Some of the hit-and-run detectives, and those at traffic services, do some exemplary work that really helps out injured people."

blogTO reached out to the TPS for comment. At the time of publication, no response had been received.