Attorney David Shellnut says the bicyclist was in a four-way stop at the intersection of Center Road and Colborne Lodge Drive in the park next to the cruiser when the cruiser turned right into the bicyclist, “failing to yield the right of way.”
“Luckily, the cyclist was able to get off his bike and recover,” Shellnutt said in an interview with CTV News Toronto on Wednesday.  “But for the better part of a decade, we’ve seen Toronto police either not enforcing traffic laws or victim-blaming cyclists, and so we push back.”
When reached for comment, Toronto police confirmed there was a minor collision between a cruiser and a bicyclist in High Park shortly after 6:30 Tuesday afternoon.
“No injuries have been reported and traffic services are continuing their investigation,” a force spokesman said.
Tensions between TPS officers and bikers have risen in recent weeks.  Last week, Shellnut lodged a formal complaint on behalf of a cyclist who was allegedly ticketed by officers for doing 6km/h over the speed limit in High Park.  The posted speed limit in the park is 20 km/h.
The day before the collision, on August 2, Shellnutt wrote a letter to Toronto Mayor John Tory’s office calling for a reduced police presence in the park after he claimed a cyclist and a woman of color were harassed by a plainclothes officer in the park on Friday night.
“It would be wise to lower temperatures […]Shellnut wrote.  “We ask that the police refrain from harassing cyclists in High Park and instead send city staff and Cycle Toronto to assist with volunteer outreach and safety awareness in the park.”
After Tuesday’s standoff, Shellnut wrote another letter in which he said it “feels like a broken record” and reiterated his request for the mayor to help ease the police presence.
When reached for comment, a spokesperson for Mayor’s Tory’s office told CTV News Toronto that the mayor’s office does not direct police enforcement.
“The mayor wants everyone in High Park to be safe — he made that clear last week,” communications spokesman Lovin Hadissi said in the statement.
They referred any further inquiries to Toronto police.
Tory recently stood behind officers facing criticism for ticketing cyclists for speeding in High Park, telling reporters he believes they are “putting safety first” for all park users.
According to publicly available Toronto police data, between 2006 and 2020, there were 16 incidents of cyclists hitting pedestrians in which a serious or fatal injury was reported.  None of these incidents were at High Park.
With files from Katherine Declerq and Chris Fox.