"Why wouldn't I stop?" Const. Northrup's accused killer testifies

Plus, new rules for first-time homebuyers and the TTC CEO probe [The Star] First Up [By Kevin Jiang] By Kevin Jiang Good morning. Here’s the latest on the testimony of accused cop-killer Umar Zameer, new rules for first-time homebuyers and an inside look at the TTC probe into their CEO. DON’T MISS Andrew Francis Wallace/The Star courts [“They were just rushing towards the car.” Umar Zameer describes the panic that preceded Const. Northrup’s death]( Umar Zameer feared his family was under attack just after midnight on July 2, 2021, when two strangers appeared yelling and pounding on his car windows — a concern that only grew when a van with tinted windows blocked their exit out of the parking garage at Nathan Phillips Square. He didn’t know the strangers were undercover police officers, he testified Thursday. Nor did Zameer realize he ran over Toronto police Const. Jeffrey Northrup as he tried to escape in the safest way possible, Betsy Powell reports. The crown and police witnesses say Northrup and his partner, Lisa Forbes, identified themselves as police; Zameer insists they did not. “Why wouldn’t I stop, if they say police, why wouldn’t I talk to them?” [Here’s his side of the story](. - Context: Zameer had spent Canada Day sightseeing in Toronto with his pregnant wife Aaida Shaikh and their two-year-old son. As the family was about to head home to Woodbridge, Northrup and Forbes entered the parking garage looking for a stabbing suspect. - Word from the prosecution: Crown attorneys and police witnesses say that while Northrup and Forbes were in plainclothes, [both wore their police badges around their necks and identified themselves as officers, shouting “Stop, police!”]( - What now? The court will hear from two more witnesses. Justice Anne Molloy said jurors will likely begin deliberations sometime next week after closing addresses. Mathew McCarthy/Waterloo Region Record housing [The Trudeau government announced plans to loosen RRSP and mortgage rules]( Speaking from a rainy Toronto backyard Thursday, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland unveiled a slate of changes intended to help people afford their mortgages and purchase their first homes. Coming ahead of Tuesday’s federal budget reveal, the updates include almost doubling the amount first-time homebuyers could withdraw from their RRSPs to put toward a down payment and changing mortgage rules so those struggling with monthly payments could permanently extend their repayment term to 35 years, Alex Ballingall reports. The measures aim to make it easier to buy homes at a time when new housing isn’t being built fast enough to meet growing demand, according to a new parliamentary report. [Here’s what you need to know](. - Go deeper: “It is a bit contradictory, in my opinion,” a former Liberal economic adviser told the Star, saying the changes could drive up demand for new homes at a time when record levels of construction already can’t keep up.  - Miss something? The update is the latest in the Liberals’ pre-budget policy tour, during which Ottawa offered up to $6 billion for provinces to build critical infrastructure and other housing supports — [so long as they meet federal conditions](. Nick Lachance/The Star star exclusive [Documents shed new light on a secretive probe into the TTC’s CEO]( The workplace investigation into Rick Leary includes allegations he violated employees’ human rights and tried to land jobs for his friends, the Star has learned. The board of the TTC has not shared any information about the probe — which has dragged on for more than five months now — leaving the public, employees, and Leary himself in the dark about its progress, Lex Harvey and Ben Spurr report. According to documents shared with the Star, the investigation is being conducted by Ottawa-based dispute resolution firm Neutral Solutions and was launched following anonymous allegations by TTC employees. [Take a closer look at what we uncovered](. - More: According to the documents, the allegations included that Leary violated employees’ human rights (specifically those of women), hired his friends, undermined TTC policies and interfered with investigations produced as part of the probe. - Background: The TTC board agreed at a closed-door meeting in October 2023 to launch an investigation. [Though TTC chair Jamaal Myers tried to suspend the CEO until the probe was finished, Leary has been allowed to remain on the job](. [Calendar icon] Are our messages a little late for you lately? Emails from the Star are taking longer than normal to arrive to Gmail and Hotmail inboxes after we send them. That's a problem we're solving now, but we're sorry for keeping you waiting. WHAT ELSE Jagmeet Singh is putting [distance between the NDP and Justin Trudeau’s consumer carbon levy](. [Bell’s CEO said CTV lost more than $180 million last year]( while being grilled by MPs about massive job cuts. [The Ford government won’t make electric vehicle chargers mandatory in new homes]( despite championing the EV industry. CRA “horror stories” are flooding social media as the agency resumes debt recovery. [Here’s why you might owe more this tax season](. Doug Ford is defending his government’s [delay in declaring an epidemic of intimate partner violence](. Who is Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar? [Here’s how his death or capture could change the war in Gaza](. Toronto home prices are expected to [overtake Vancouver’s later this year](. [O.J. Simpson died at 76]( his family announced Thursday. A non-profit group is aiming to save Kensington Market by [buying buildings and leasing them out at affordable rates](. Here’s why the No Name Mobile plan [might be the best deal in the country](. Raptors Insider: Wait ‘til next year? [The work has already started for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley](. Leafs star Auston Matthews is just [two goals shy of 70 with three games left to play](. POV Sam Mircovich/AFP via Getty Images [Mythic, tragic, repellent. That was the O.J. Simpson story.]( CLOSE-UP Richard Lautens/The Star TRINITY-BELLWOODS: A person runs to dodge the rain on Claremont Street near Trinity-Bellwoods Park amid several days of April showers. [Environment Canada has issued a rainfall warning for the city this morning]( expect 10 to 15 mm of rain, tapering off around noon. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_212104). Andrew will see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](