Random carding coming to an end

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The police practice known as “carding” will be illegal in Ontario before the end of the year.

Community Safety Minister Yasir Naqvi confirms the Wynne Liberals will ban random and arbitrary street checks while creating stronger guidelines for street checks that are part of an actual investigation, including rules on how any information is used.

Hamilton City Councillor Matthew Green held a city meeting in September to shed light on the topic, and hopes Friday’s news will bring change to Hamilton: “I’m hopeful that it signals to communities that throughout the consultation process, the minister was listening to communities and really respecting the lived experiences that are going on out there. What I’m concerned about locally, where there’s admission that this is wrong, yet there’s a statement that we don’t do it here. So I think we have to be clear about this practice and what it means. I think we need to be clear about what police purposes mean in the city of Hamilton so that we can have an honest conversation about this.”

Critics have long said the practice violates the charter of rights and disproportionally targeted minorities. We asked Hamilton police chief Glenn de Caire for a comment but he wasn’t available.