Toronto's deputy chief of police is taking his annual leave after making controversial comments criticizing the force and its billion-dollar budget.
Union complaints have been filed against Deputy Chief Peter Sloly, who made the comments on Friday to a small group at a not-for-profit Toronto research centre.
On Wednesday, Toronto Police Director of Corporate Communications Mark Pugash confirmed that Sloly is on annual leave.
Pugash said he didn't know when the deputy chief would be back, but said that the leave was the same as a holiday.
Sloly is under fire from some members of the city's police force after speaking about the service's budget, suggesting that new technology, including smartphones, could help Toronto police cut back on spending.
If every officer had access to the Internet through a mobile device, it would cut down on the number of police stations needed, he said.
"We can probably drop ourselves by several hundred police officers, which represents tens of millions of dollars," he said.
Sloly also weighed in on the controversial "carding" policy, the practice of random street checks that has come under fire amid allegations of racial profiling. He said he believes many members of the community no longer trust the police.
"I've never seen policing at this low a point in terms of public trust and legitimacy," he said, telling the audience that he believes major changes are needed to prevent a crisis.
Sloly not ordered to take leave
Police Chief Mark Saunders addressed Sloly’s comments on Wednesday, saying that the deputy was not ordered to take any time off.
Saunders said he didn’t know if the leave had anything to do with Sloly’s controversial remarks, adding that he and Sloly are “on the same page” about the fact that changes need to be made to the police force.
The head of the association representing Toronto police employees, however, says he isn’t pleased with Sloly’s comments.
“He put out a position to the public that made all our Toronto police service and association look like we haven’t been doing anything and it’s just not factually correct and it sends out the wrong impression…when he knows better,” Mark McCormack said. “These seem to be self-serving statements.”
Mayor John Tory said on Wednesday that Sloly’s proposed changes were not radically different from what the city and police were already looking at.
It is unclear when Sloly will be back at work.
With a report from CTV Toronto’s Natalie Johnson
