TO Mayor's Court Day

[mountaingal]

so mi decide fi walk go City Hall to return some libry book and pass by the farmer's market. as i was passing the courts, mi notice a whoooole heapa media truck. then i remembered.

"o yeah, a today mayor Rob Ford tek the stand fi defend himself gense conflict of interest."



on the way back some 40 mins later, mi the mayor drive outta the parking garage inna im big black suv, widdim bredda and couple other people inna di cyar. im wave to smaddy out the window. so i thought: "o, things mussa went well for him in court"

then mi see him pullup, and come out widdim bredda. this is like, less than a 100 metres from the parking garage entrance. four police go fi escort him from him cyar into the courthouse thru the side entrance. bare media camera a focus from him.

i cannot take all dis excitement.

TORONTO PEEPS - unu think mayor ford will prevail and keep him job? or will he be found guilty and tossed?

[Cultcha]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

Was he reading the paper when you saw him driving?

[Rivers]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

Well am not in Torontom but from what I read about what happen and with politrix I think he will keep his job. Now why the cops escorting him that short distance is beyond me pure hype

[mountaingal]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: KF_Milo</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Was he reading the paper when you saw him driving? </div></div>

no, not this time

[mountaingal]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Rivers</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Well am not in Torontom but from what I read about what happen and with politrix I think he will keep his job. <span style="font-weight: bold">Now why the cops escorting him that short distance is beyond me pure hyp</span>e </div></div>

no muss. and it was a return from break, too. he's being cross-examined now, and mi a follow the live tweeting on the Globe and Mail.

[Rivers]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

what an idit,

actually my parents say they think the case has already been decided and the trial is just to appease the public

[mountaingal]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

news report from this morning's session, when ford was being questioned by his own lawyer.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toro...article4520165/


<span style="font-weight: bold">The mayor of Toronto told a packed courtroom Wednesday why he cast a vote that has landed him in legal hot water: Rob Ford did not believe he had a conflict of interest because the issue only benefited him, not the city.
</span>
“Did you think you had a conflict of interest in voting to rescind the resolution of two years earlier?” Alan Lenczner, Mr. Ford’s lawyer, asked him.

“No,” the mayor replied.

“And why is that, sir?”

“Because, again, there’s no interest in the city,” Mr. Ford said. “This is just my personal issue. This does not benefit the city in any way. So this is, to me, not a conflict of interest.

Mr. Ford’s explanation is likely to form the basis of a back-up defence that the mayor made an “honest error of judgment” when he spoke to and voted on an issue related to his personal football foundation in February.

Mr. Lenczner told the court earlier in the day that he intends to rely primarily on legal arguments to keep Mayor Ford from being turfed from office -- the automatic penalty if the mayor is found to have breached the Municipal Conflict-of-Interest Act.

Earlier in the day, the lawyer spearheading the case against Mr. Ford argued the mayor knew exactly what he was doing when he cast his vote.

“If [it’s an error of judgment], it’s an unusual error of judgment because that error continues to this day,” Clayton Ruby told the court in his opening statement. “He is not sorry he spoke and voted.”

Mr. Ford has repeatedly defended his behaviour on the grounds it helped the Rob Ford Football Foundation, which raises money to buy football equipment for underprivileged high schools.

Mr. Ruby argued that, “the kids are not the issue. No one wants to shut down the football foundation. The issue is the integrity of what Mayor Ford did.”

Mr. Ford entered the courthouse through a side door, avoiding the crowd of photographers awaiting his arrival outside. He arrived to find a courtroom packed with reporters, foes and friends, including his brother, Councillor Doug Ford, and his chief of staff, Mark Towhey.

The lawsuit stems from a speech Mayor Ford delivered and a vote he cast on Feb.7. Eighteen months earlier, council had ordered him to repay out of his own pocket $3,150 in improper donations to his personal football foundation from lobbyists, their clients and one company that does business with the city.

<span style="font-weight: bold">Mr. Ford ignored six requests from the integrity commissioner for proof he paid back the money, prompting the integrity commissioner to send the item back to council in February.
</span>
At that time, the mayor gave an impassioned speech about his football charity and argued he should not have to pay back the money. He then voted in favour of a motion moved by one of his allies to rescind the sanction.

Toronto resident Paul Magder, the plaintiff who filed the lawsuit against Mr. Ford, argues that speech and vote violated the Municipal Conflict-of-Interest Act.

<span style="font-weight: bold">If Mr. Justice Charles Hackland, the Ottawa judge brought in to oversee the case, finds Mr. Ford broke the act, he would have no choice but to boot the mayor from office.

The judge could also ban Mr. Ford from running again for up to seven years.</span>

[mountaingal]

Re: TO Mayor's Court Day

for those interested in following the live tweets, #fordcourt