Toronto Officer Under Investigation Following Scathing Letter to Mayor

Sergeant Mark Hayward’s letter blasted Mayor Tory for the cancellation of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy (TAVIS) program.

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Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders revealed that one of his officers is under an internal "professional standards" investigation after a letter the officer allegedly wrote — which reportedly said that Mayor John Tory is a "direct contributor" to gun violence in the city — was leaked to the media.

Sergeant Mark Hayward’s letter blasted Mayor Tory for the cancellation of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy (TAVIS) program, a provincial task force that had the highest rate of carding in Toronto’s police force," according to the Star.

The TAVIS program increased the presence of officers in areas where shootings and gang violence were most common.

The letter was also critical of Chief Saunders. "It is obvious Chief Saunders is a puppet on strings and you are pulling them," said the letter.

Mayor Tory said he felt that the letter was part of a larger "campaign" by Toronto Police Association president Mike McCormack against Toronto police's modernization efforts.

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