A little more than a month after delivering his 310-page report on the practice of police street checks in Ontario, Justice Michael Tulloch will be in London to speak at a London Police Service event held in honour of Black History Month.
Tulloch will be the keynote speaker during the presentation of the Lewis Coray “Trailblazer Award” for Youth on Friday, February 22. Officials with London police say Tulloch will address the critical role of education in creating equality.
The Trailblazer Award, presented to the youth from London’s black community who submitted the best essay or video about the importance of Black History Month, is named in honour of Sgt. Lewis Coray. He was the first black officer hired by the London Police Service and officials say the award was created to offer incentives and opportunities for growth and success among youth from the African, Caribbean and black Canadian communities.
Tulloch’s report on the controversial practice of street checks was made public in early January and noted police and the public need to be able to clearly distinguish between valid street checks by officers and random stops that should be abandoned altogether.
In the document, Tulloch called for police forces to stop random street checks in which a person’s information is demanded, adding they disproportionately harm people from racialized communities, waste police resources, and do nothing to address crime.
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However, Tulloch argued street checks can have real investigative value as long as they take place when officers have clearly defined grounds to stop a person, ask them questions and potentially retain identifying information.
The Trailblazer Award ceremony is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. at London Police Headquarters. It’s open to the public and free to attend.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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