The wrong-way police chase that ended in tragedy

Plus, the lawyer behind Umar Zameer's acquittal and Toronto traffic [The Star] First Up [By Manuela Vega] By Manuela Vega Good morning. Here’s the latest on the police chase that ended in a devastating crash, the stunning acquittal of Umar Zameer and efforts to address Toronto traffic. DON’T MISS Colin Williamson Photo policing [Radio calls captured the tragic moments leading up to wrong-way police chase on Highway 401 in Whitby]( At least six Durham Region police cars sped the wrong way down Highway 401 on Monday night, chasing a U-Haul van driven by a man accused of robbing an LCBO. “Someone’s going to get hurt,” an unidentified OPP officer warned the supervising officer. “10-4,” the dispatcher said. “We’re calling them now.” Less than three minutes later, the suspect’s cube van hit an oncoming car. Four people died: a baby, the infant’s 60-year-old and 55-year-old grandparents, and the man who police were pursuing. [These are the conversations emergency responders were having moments before the fiery crash](. - Word from police: “We understand there are many questions, however there is a legislated process regarding investigations conducted by the SIU that our service must adhere to,” said Durham police in a press release Tuesday afternoon, adding it cannot make a public statement on the incident. - More: When should police give chase to a fleeing vehicle? [Here’s what the regulations say](. R.J. Johnston/The Star courts [Meet Nader Hasan, the Toronto lawyer behind the stunning acquittal of Umar Zameer]( The outcome of Umar Zameer’s trial has captured the city this month unlike any other in recent Toronto history — and it’s still reverberating through the courts and the city’s police service, Betsy Powell writes. Behind it all was Nader Hasan, a 45-year-old lawyer who, before this year, was best known for pioneering novel legal agreements before the Ontario Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Canada — not as a go-to name to pull off the year’s most sensational criminal defence. [Take a closer look at his career, which his legal partner describes as “fighting for the little guy, the underdog, against the establishment.”]( - Go deeper: “I’ve seen him overturn several laws for being unconstitutional, he’s been to the (Supreme Court of Canada) more than anyone I know, he’s changed the entire landscape of law across the country for minorities, he’s attacked governments for destroying the environment, he’s had judges state that his client wasn’t only legally innocent — but factually innocent,” said Toronto defence lawyer Monte MacGregor. - Meanwhile: Toronto’s police chief is apologizing for [saying he hoped for a “different outcome” at the Zameer trial](. Lance McMillan/The Star traffic [A behind-the-scenes peek at the control centre trying to keep Toronto’s clogged streets moving]( In a building near Thorncliffe Park, about 10 people in a dark room watch screens focused on some of Toronto’s most crucial — and troublesome — intersections. They’re technicians and engineers tasked with tackling the city’s congestion, Lex Harvey reports. While the city deploys traffic agents at clogged intersections to address the issue at a micro level, the control room is where the city deals with traffic at a macro, system-wide level. [Watch this video for an inside look](. - Context: Using smart technology, the technicians and engineers can adjust the timing of Toronto’s roughly 2,500 traffic signals based on real-time conditions. - More: “You really have to be strategic about what you implement, and where and how and when,” said Roger Browne, Toronto’s director of traffic management. WHAT ELSE Doug Ford is urging students not to [interrupt graduation ceremonies with encampment protests against the war in Gaza](. Pierre Poilievre says he’d deny some offenders bail [using the controversial notwithstanding clause to limit Canadians’ rights](. [York Regions’s Children’s Aid Society was wrong to deny a teen help before her sudden death]( Ontario’s ombudsman has found. One hour. 20 kids. 190 phone notifications. [Here’s what one Ontario math teacher’s experiment found about students’ cellphones](. Toronto’s homeless shelters have become more violent. [A new study suggests how to make them safer](. MLSE is seeking $3 million in damages from a fire at a 2022 Raptors game. [Here’s what we know](. Air Canada has suspended its new seat selection fee [just two days after the rollout](. An E-bike cyclist has died after being [hit by a truck driver in the Annex](. Drake is under fire again, as [Kendrick Lamar takes aim at the Toronto rapper with a new scorched-earth diss track](. Citytv is cancelling “Cityline” after 40 years — [but host Tracy Moore is moving to “Breakfast Television.”]( POV Canadian Press/Adiran Wyld [Pierre Poilievre has slipped his leash, and he’s giving us a preview of how he’d govern.]( CLOSE-UP Canadian Press/Christinne Muschi MONTREAL: A man reads a sign of demands posted outside a pro-Palestinian encampment set up on McGill University's campus on Tuesday. [Meanwhile, the university has asked Montreal police to dismantle the encampment](. 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_213086). I’ll 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. 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