Chief William Blair --safety

Make the right/safe choice – Chief Blair

By William Doyle-Marshall

Toronto Police Chief William Blair reports in his year end conversation about policing that 2012 has been a challenging year. Two major events this summer  – the shooting at the Eaton Center and the shooting at Danzig -- have caused a great deal of fear in the city. But Blair acknowledged “we came together; we worked together. We solved those terrible crimes and we worked together to help keep our communities safe”.

                                           William Blair,Toronto Police Chief

  He is very concerned about tragedies like those because innocent young people lost their lives. So far this year 53 people have lost their lives in the City of Toronto and that is a tragedy for their families, tragedy for their community and a tragedy for the city, the top law officer remarked. “But we have also made great progress in reducing violence in making our community safer. We will end this year with fewer shooting occurrences than last year and last year was the safest year in decades in Toronto. So we are continuing to make progress,” Blair affirmed.

   He spoke proudly about an almost ten percent reduction in crime in the City of Toronto so far this year. That’s eight consecutive years of significant crime reduction, Chief Blair emphasized. “These are things we should be proud of,” he stressed.

    He predicted that Torontonians will face challenges in the future -- fiscal and in many aspects of our lives. Never-the-less Blair insisted Torontonians should be very proud of what “we as a city have accomplished and what we continue to accomplish. This is a very safe city. It’s a very livable city. It’s a city that we should all be proud to live in; it’s a city we should always work hard to protect.”

   In acknowledging this very special festive time of celebration with family members and friends the Chief says sometimes it involves the consumption of alcohol. “I want people to make the right choice, the safe choice. Make arrangements to get home. We have a good taxi system here, we have a good transit system here. We have friends and family who could make sure that we get home safely.

   Blair warns if you are going to go and drink in a party, make sure that you have a safe way of getting home. Friends and family have a responsibility for each other and must look out for each other, he advises. “You have a friend or a family member who you think has had too much to drink, have the courage to stand up and say ‘you can’t drive’ and take away their keys.”

  Determined to ensure the roads are safe Chief Blair also advises if you see someone who was drinking and then driving—an impaired driver—you have to understand how dangerous that is. That’s a threat to all of our safety. Your friend could kill himself. Your friend could kill someone else.”

   “If you see someone driving impaired, pick up the phone and call 911.Call 911 because that’s a public safety emergency. That could get somebody killed. Give us a chance to intervene. Give us the location, the license plate of the car, the direction of travel and we will go and see if we can stop that individual. We need the public’s help in this because their eyes and ears are very, very helpful. I want people to enjoy themselves in this holiday season. It’s a time of family; it’s a time for your friends; it’s a time of great celebration. But it also must be a time of  safety and not just impaired driving,” The Police Chief continues.

  It’s getting darker earlier now and people are rushing everywhere and this could be very dangerous. Last minute shopping arrangements and trying to gather with family and friends are among the distractions. “We are all distracted and we are all in a hurry. So when you are crossing the street make sure you can do so safely; make sure the other guy sees you and you can cross that road without being hurt,” Blair counsels

   “When you are driving your car, look out for other people, be courteous. This is the time of year for peace on earth and goodwill to all men. That goodwill should be respected and courtesy. So if you see someone, give way; if you see a pedestrian trying to cross the street be careful, slow down; allow them to cross. If we all did this, our streets will be safer; if we all did this, everyone will get home safely and that’s what we wish for the people of Toronto.

December 21, 2012