A Toronto police officer has admitted to assaulting a man in a Toronto park over two years after the incident took place.
Constable Andrew Davis, who was initially charged with aggravated assault and discharging a firearm with intent to harm after an investigation into the shooting of a 31-year-old man in February 2023, pleaded guilty to the charges.
On the morning of the incident, police received a report of a man with a knife and an unleashed dog near Trethewey and Black Creek drives. The situation escalated when officers confronted the man in a park, requesting him to drop the knife. Despite efforts, including the use of a taser that had no effect, the man began harming himself with the knife. Constable Davis eventually fired two shots, causing serious injuries to the man, later identified as Devon Fowlin.
Fowlin, who was living in his vehicle at the time and struggled with mental health issues, expressed his ongoing challenges both physically and emotionally after the shooting. He called for better responses in handling mental health crises.
Constable Davis’s sentencing is scheduled for October 2, with a pending police tribunal hearing. Activists and Fowlin’s representative criticized the handling of the situation, questioning the directives given to the officer and emphasizing the need for improved approaches to similar incidents.