The orgs are calling for an impartial investigation into the alleged assault of lawyer Sudine Riley, who is Black
Legal organizations across Ontario are calling for an independent investigation into allegations that Durham Regional police officers violently assaulted a criminal defence lawyer while she was working at an Oshawa courthouse last week, with some stating that their members are concerned for their own safety.
At least six legal organizations – the Criminal Lawyers' Association, Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association, Jamaican Canadian Bar Association, Federation of Ontario Law Associations, Canadian Association of Black Lawyers, and the South Asian Bar Association of Toronto – have released statements this week calling for independent or impartial investigations of the allegations.
Some of the organizations argue that the Durham Regional Police Service cannot be impartial if it investigates its own officers. All of the organizations suggest that the alleged assault was motivated by racial bias against the lawyer, Sudine Riley, who is Black and wears a headscarf.
Theresa Donkor, director of advocacy for the Canadian Association of Black Lawyers, told Law Times on Wednesday that members have reached out to her to express concerns about their own safety not only at the Oshawa courthouse, but at courthouses more generally.
“If this can happen to one person, especially a lawyer, it can happen to anybody,” Donkor says, adding that the incident sends “a chilling message to Black lawyers, Black defendants, Black victims, about who belongs and who is protected within our legal institutions.”
Cassandra DeMelo, president of Women In Canadian Criminal Defence, says that dozens of members have approached the organization expressing that they feel unsafe.
“As a general whole, our group is concerned about what happened to Sudine, and we’re concerned about her well-being and her safety in the aftermath of this,” DeMelo says. “But I can tell you that dozens of members… are concerned for their own safety, especially our racialized members.”
News of the alleged assault emerged this week, when a lawyer representing Riley issued a press release stating that on Jan. 23, Riley had been catching up on legal work in an interview room at the Oshawa courthouse when uniformed officers came in to “challenge her presence.”
Riley’s lawyer, Neha Chugh of Chugh Law, alleged that the officers then slammed Riley’s head on the desk, pushed their knees into her back and neck, and dragged her out of the room. The officers then allegedly handcuffed Riley and took her to cells in the courthouse basement.
According to Chugh’s account, the officers had ripped off Riley’s headscarf and raised her skirt during the alleged assault. Chugh said that Riley’s head was bleeding, and her eyes were swollen from being slammed into the desk.
DeMelo says WiCCD notified Justice Lara Crawford, the local administrative justice for the Ontario Court of Justice’s Oshawa courthouse, of the incident on Sunday after Riley reached out to the organization for support. Riley is a member of WiCCD. The letter was also addressed to other justices who preside over the region encompassing Oshawa.
WiCCD’s letter asked that the court put protocols in place to ensure the safety and security of its members.
DeMelo says the organization received responses from Crawford and counsel for the other judges, indicating that they were concerned about the incident and that an investigation was ongoing. However, DeMelo argues that the court hasn’t taken enough steps to assuage WiCCD members’ safety concerns.
“We don't even know what the status of the alleged involved officers is at this point,” DeMelo says. “Or who's doing the investigation, or what the investigation looks like. We don’t know, really, any details.”
A spokesperson for the Ontario Court of Justice told Law Times on Wednesday evening that the Durham Regional Police Service has started an investigation into the incident, and that they could not comment while the matter is under police investigation.
However, the spokesperson said, "I can tell you the safety and security of everyone who works in or attends any courthouse in Ontario is of paramount importance to the court."
The Durham Regional Police Service did not respond to multiple questions by Law Times on Wednesday, including whether an independent body will conduct the investigation.
Karen Seeley, the criminal law chair and northwest representative for the Federation of Ontario Law Associations, says the police service should not be investigating its own officers in this case. An impartial investigation is critical so that the association can be assured “that all individuals that are entering courthouses, not just licensees, are safe and that their Charter rights are being protected,” Seeley says.
“If there is a systemic or a cultural problem, whether it’s at Oshawa or otherwise, we want to ensure that’s addressed,” Seeley adds.
Donkor and DeMelo expressed similar sentiments.
“This is a defence lawyer doing her job,” DeMelo says of Riley. “Why is she being touched in any way, shape, or form by police? Why is she being trespassed from the place that she’s entitled to do her work? What message does that send to us as defence counsel as to our place in the justice system if we’re at risk of being assaulted by the very people who are apparently sent to the courthouse to protect us?”
Chugh, who represents Riley, declined to comment further on the matter.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated with comments from an Ontario Court of Justice spokesperson.
