Despite charges being laid, 'serious consequences' remain for man shot by Toronto police: lawyer

Activist Desmond Cole, left, stands next to with Devon Fowlin, the victim of a police-involved shooting on Feb. 27, 2023, and his dog during a Sept. 11 news conference. (Ken Enlow/CP24)

A lawyer for a man who was allegedly shot by a Toronto police officer in a North York park this past winter says that his client is relieved to see criminal charges in the case, but remains “deeply traumatized” by the incident.

David Shellnutt made the comment during a news conference on Monday afternoon, just three days after the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) announced that Const. Andrew Davis has been criminally charged in the Feb. 27 shooting of 31-year-old Devon Fowlin.

The charges against Davis, which have not yet been tested in court, include aggravated assault and discharging a firearm with intent to maim, wound, disfigure, or endanger life.

“Devon is deeply traumatized by the events of that morning. … He almost lost his life because of it,” Shellnutt said.

“On (Devon’s) behalf, I can say that he feels relief knowing that what he experienced has come to light and that the SIU, at least as far as I can tell, agrees that what happened to him was wrong. Simultaneously though, he feels that the way in which he was treated is deeply troubling and it lays bare the inadequacies of our current system of policing, where in many cases, Black and Indigenous Torontonians are met with suspicion and violence.”

On Feb. 27, 2023, just before 8 a.m., Toronto police responded to a call for a report of an adult male armed with a knife at a park near Black Creek and Trethewey drives. According to Toronto police, a man was walking a dog in the area when he allegedly threatened another man.

SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette told the media shortly after the incident that some sort of interaction ensued between that individual and responding officers resulting in two of them firing conducted energy weapons at him and the third discharging his firearm.

The SIU’s director, Joseph Martino, indicated in his decision to lay charges that Davis fired his gun twice during the exchange, which happened just a few hundred metres away from 12 Division police station.

Fowlin, the victim, was critically injured as a result and now lives with a physical disability due to the nerve damaged he sustained, Shellnutt said.

Davis, meanwhile, has been suspended with pay per the terms of the Toronto Police Services Act. He is due in court next month.

“Our primary purpose today is to illuminate the serious consequences of this incident,” Shellnutt said.

“The huge cost to Mr. Fowlin and to our community can be seen over and over again, case after case. Collectively, we continue to bear the high cost of (alleged) police violence. Long after the SIU investigation and criminal court case runs its course, Mr. Fowling will undoubtedly still be dealing with the after effects of that fateful February morning. … It's miraculous that (he) survived. Many in his case, most, do not.”

Fowlin attended Monday’s press conference, but did not speak or answer any questions from reporters.

In a statement provided to CP24, Toronto Police Association (TPA) President Jon Reid said that what happened in February was “an unfortunate incident for everyone involved,” but urged people to “wait for the case to make its way through the courts.”

“Police officers are governed by the highest degree of oversight and accountability, more so than any other profession," he said.

"As difficult as it may be, we must wait for the case to make its way through the courts and for the disciplinary process that may follow. In the interim, there is no value in passing judgement on this officer or with casting aspersions on an entire membership."