Canadian police chief tells victims of home invasions 'the best defense is to comply'

York Regional Police Chief Jim MacSween told residents not to take justice into their own hands when confronted by criminals, saying, “The best defence is to comply.” His comments come as Premier Doug Ford and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre demand reforms to Canada’s self-defense laws.
 

“The premier can make his own statement and his own mind up about that. What I would say is, as a police service, we'll follow the laws as they're written. The laws change, we'll change with the laws,” the police chief said.

“But as it stands, we know the best defence for most people is to comply. As you've just heard, a number of safety recommendations will allow for those that are victimizing members in the community to leave and not harm anyone. It sometimes can fall on deaf ears when members feel like they have to take matters into their own hands.

“And the only thing I'd say is, if we are going to rely on our community members to take matters into their own hands to solve this problem, we have all failed our community. I've been down at Queen's Park. I've provided comments on bail reform. So have many of my colleagues across the GTA. And here we are again talking about it. And it seems like, in some cases, we have not moved the needle collectively.

“Because this is not just a police issue. Unfortunately, when it becomes our issue, it's too late. So we need to do something about this issue around bail and about keeping those people off the streets that shouldn't be on the streets.”

MacSween’s comments follow a violent home invasion in Lindsay, Ontario, on Monday. Police said a 44-year-old man awoke around 3 am to find an intruder in his apartment. A fight broke out, leaving the suspect with life-threatening injuries. Both the tenant and the intruder were later charged.

The comments also come after a home invasion in York where a man confronted people invading his home. Abdul Aleem Farooqi confronted  the invaders, which would unfortunately lead to him being shot to death in front of his children. Premier Ford told reporters that Farooqi was a friend of his. "Just imagine, you know ... the trauma these kids are going to go through for the rest of their lives," Ford said.

"I have a saying for the folks that are defending their homes: 'I'd rather be judged by 12 than carried by six.' And unfortunately, my friend Aleem is going to be carried by six because he's trying to defend his family," Ford said.

Ford called the justice system “broken.”

Poilievre also weighed in, saying Canadians should not face prosecution for protecting their families. “If someone breaks in, you deserve the right to defend your loved ones and your property – full stop,” Poilievre said in a post on social media.

Speaking at a news conference in Brampton, Poilievre announced that a Conservative government would move to amend the Criminal Code so that force is presumed reasonable if used against a person who breaks into a home. “After 10 years of Liberals, the system treats victims like criminals and criminals like victims,” he said, per CBC.

Current Canadian law allows self-defense only if a person reasonably believes force is being used against them or another, and their response must be considered reasonable in the circumstances.

This story will be updated.