5-metre G20 fence rule was bullshit

Toronto's Chief of Police Bill Blair admitted today that the so-called "5-metre rule" never actually existed. The much-publicized law was supposedly passed by the provincial government prior to the G20 Summit in secret and allowed police to arrest and detain any individual who came within 5-metres of the security perimeter and either refused to provide identification or would not state their business for being at the fence.

Blair's admission that the law never actually existed comes on the heals of allegations of improper police conduct during the summit that led to hundreds of people being detained for little more than being present at peaceful protests.

I myself even had a first-hand experience of the 5-metre rule. While waiting for a Greyhound bus in Toronto on Thursday afternoon, I decided to take my camera down to the fence and take some shots. After about half an hour or so, I was approached at Front & Bay by an RCMP officer who demanded to know why I was there and why I was taking photographs of the security fence. I was fully compliant, showing him my passport, talking about my blog, showing him the photographs. After about ten minutes, he let me go about my business. The revelation that the officer may not have actually had the authority to cause me that minor inconvenience (and I might also add, a rapid heartbeat) has me angered. I can only imagine the anger now welling in those that were detained in the east detention facility for over a day.

Read the reports on Blair's admission by the CBC and the Toronto Star.