Judge says 'no evidence fully supports' murder case against Umar Zameer as jury starts deliberations
CTV
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Jury deliberations have begun in the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer, with the judge providing guidance to them, including that the Crown prosecutors have no evidence that "fully supports" their case.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy told jurors on Thursday that the police officers’ testimony that is the foundation of the case against Umar Zameer doesn`t match the physical evidence, and advised them to watch out for possible collusion that might misrepresent how Det-Const. Jeffrey Northrup died.
“There is no evidence that fully supports the Crown’s theory,” said Justice Molloy. “It is clear from the video that Officer Northrup was not standing upright in the laneway when he was knocked to the ground and run over, even though the three police witnesses all say that he was.”
“When three versions of the event are wrong, and wrong in the same way, you must also consider whether there has been collusion between those witnesses. All of the officers denied collusion,” she said.
Presented with a transcript of the judge’s remarks, criminal lawyer Joseph Neuberger, who is not connected to the case, said that hearing this guidance from an impartial judge tips the scales heavily in favour of the defence.
“Her honour’s particular comment about that portion of the evidence for the Crown is extremely damaging to the Crown’s case. And I mean, extremely damaging,” he said in an interview.
Zameer has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in Northrup's death. The officer, who was in plain clothes, died on July 2, 2021, after he was hit by a vehicle in an underground parking garage at Toronto City Hall.
