Canadian True Crime - Collision Course: The Darcy Allan Sheppard Case (4)

Episode Date: August 23, 2024

[ Part 4 of 4 ] The TruthHidden documents and files are released through a Freedom of Information request, strongly suggesting that what actually happened on August 31, 2009 was different to the narrative presented by the press — and in court.In this new four-part series, edited and re-mastered, you’ll hear a story of elites vs peasants, cars vs bicycles, and wealth and privilege vs poverty and crime. It’s a cautionary tale of how justice works differently in this country for some people.Listen ad-free and early: The entire series is available ad-free on our premium feeds - Amazon Music (included with Prime), Apple Podcasts, Patreon and Supercast.INVITATION: 15th Annual Memorial Gathering - TorontoPlease join us Saturday, August 31 at 3 p.m. at the spot where Darcy died at 151 Bloor Street West. There’s a white Ghost Bike opposite Tiffany & Co and close to Bloor St and Avenue Road.Special thanks to Allan Sheppard, Joe Hendry and Victoria (the eyewitness). Thanks also to writer Mary Fairhurst Breen for editing and creative direction on this reboot series.Please respect the privacy of those involved in this case.Full list of information sources, resources and credits:All the documents, evidence, statements, reports and news articles we’ve relied upon to write this series are available at www.canadiantruecrime.ca/episodes/darcy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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You can listen to Canadian True Crime ad-free and early on Amazon Music included with Prime, Apple Podcasts, Patreon and Supercast. In the last episode, we unpacked Michael Bryant's version of events given at the controversial 2010 court proceeding. The special independent prosecutor had introduced scope-elite evidence of prior aggressive conduct. Six incidents of motorists who had a confrontation with an angry cyclist they alleged to be Darcy Allen Shepard that Michael Bryant didn't know about at the time of his own incident with Darcy.

The court heard that these incidents showed that Darcy had a prior history of aggression toward other motorists, and he was therefore likely to have also been the aggressor in the altercation with Michael Bryant that caused his death. Special independent prosecutor Richard Peck determined there was no reasonable prospect

of convicting Bryant and asked that the charges be marked as withdrawn. At the end of the hearing, Peck invited Michael Bryant's defence lawyer to provide a comment. Marie Hennan started off by thanking the prosecution team for undertaking, quote, The defence lawyer went on to praise the prosecution team, describing them as the model of prosecutorial fairness and objectivity, and special prosecutor Richard Peck as, not one to do things by half measure. Marie Hennan said she'd never had a case before where she had made the decision to quote, open up our file, expose our full defence to the prosecutorial and police scrutiny before

the case was even heard. The reason she did this, she explained, was because she had complete confidence in the strength of the defence's case and believed that when the objective facts were fully exposed and examined, they pointed to one and only one conclusion, quote, Michael's innocence. She then went over Michael Bryant's version of events and the case again, the version you would expect to hear from his criminal defence lawyer.

Marie Hennan's retelling was more succinct, but peppered with more descriptive language of her client. The court heard that the couple were out celebrating their wedding anniversary that night. Quote, The mood was warm. It was nostalgic. It was reminiscing like many couples do over their years together. Michael Bryant would publish his memoir 28 Seconds two years after that.

He revealed that their marriage had actually been in trouble for a while. They'd been in counselling for months. He forgot their anniversary and scrambled to make plans. As you'll remember, after their anniversary dinner that night, Michael Bryant was trying to get to a bookstore before it closed to get his wife a book that she wanted. The court heard that to reach that bookstore they would have had to turn off Bloor Street at Bay Street, the intersection before the mid-block pedestrian crossing. When they saw there was traffic up ahead, they changed their mind, deciding to just

go home to their children. That meant they didn't need to turn, and that's why they stayed on Bloor Street. This was described by Marie Hennan as a life-changing decision. Quote, that decision and that decision alone would bring Michael and Susan face to face with the rage of Darcy Shepherd.

That decision would bring them here today. And then when describing the part of the attack where Darcy latched on to the side of the car, Marie Hennan told the court that Michael claimed Darcy said to him, you are not getting away that easily. This was the first time this particular comment was mentioned in these proceedings. And there's no eyewitness account of this comment other than Michael Bryant's own recollection. Despite this, it should be stated that Darcy's father, Alan Shepard, believes that this comment is consistent with something Darcy would have said, but not in the threatening way Michael Bryant was claiming

through his lawyer. As you'll remember, after the car accelerated into Darcy and he landed on the road near the driver's side, three eyewitnesses had heard Darcy saying to bystanders, You're all witnesses to this. One of them said he was gesturing at the Saab as he said this. One of the narratives planted in the media was the attempted carjacker story that Darcy had tried to grab the wheel that we now know is completely untrue but it made an appearance in court that day. Michael Bryant's defense lawyer said quote, as Darcy was deep into the vehicle with his entire upper torso leaning into it,

Michael recalled Darcy laughing as he desperately tried to control the steering wheel. Marie Hannon told the court that there were only two options for Michael Bryant, stop the vehicle and be attacked by Darcy Allen Shepard or the option he chose, which was to risk driving into oncoming traffic, exposing himself and his wife to a head on collision. The court heard that Michael believed at that point in time it was the only way to get away from Darcy's attack. Quote, throughout this brief but frightening attack, his wife thought they were both going

to die. The court heard that they drove to safety around the corner to the Park Hyatt hotel where they called 911. Quote, if there was any question as to what was in Michael's mind at that moment, there can be no question when you hear his 911 plea for help. He requests that the police come because he has just been attacked. It is the call of someone terrified for his and his wife's life. It is the call of someone who has just been attacked. The court never heard that call because this wasn't a trial.

Marie Hennan's comments ended with this statement, quote, Today, if you were to ask Michael what he would have done differently that night on August 31st, he would tell you that he wished he and Susan had just stayed home. At the end of the proceeding Justice P Bentley praised both the Crown and the defence. Quote, In this case both counsel for the Crown and the defence worked above and beyond what I have seen in many, many years and all all I can say is that, to all counsel, you represent the best interest of the justice system." This judge wasn't a trier of law or fact. In this pre-trial court proceeding, his mandate

from the Attorney General is to facilitate agreement between the Crown and the defence, with the goal to avoid the expense of a trial. So given they had essentially done just that, it was a good outcome for everyone. But this isn't what usually happens when the Crown and the Defence reach an agreement. It's usually through compromise where the Defence makes admissions in exchange for concessions from the Crown. Michael Bryant didn't make a single admission about anything he may have done wrong that night. Because it was such a high profile case, there was a news conference held after the court

proceeding. Special prosecutor Richard Peck told reporters that Michael Bryant was, quote, confronted by a man who unfortunately was in a rage. In such circumstances, he was legally justified in trying to get away. The case could not be proved. When Michael fronted the press, he stated that he'll never forget what happened that night, describing it as an unnecessary tragedy. A young man is dead and for his family and friends that remains the searing memory. To them I express my sympathies and sincere condolences.

I have grieved that loss and I always will. While he felt terrified and panicked during the ordeal, he said he has no anger towards Darcy Ellen Shepard, and he described the whole experience as being incredibly humbling, given he went from being attorney general to being cuffed in the back of a police car. Quote, He said he was looking forward to going back to work at Toronto law firm Ogilvy-Renow. CTV News reported that in response to criticism that Michael continued to drive erratically while Darcy was hanging onto the car, a reporter asked him why he didn't take his foot off the pedal. Michael paused and said that he'd thought a lot

about what he would do differently if he had the chance, but quote, what happened is being really exhaustively described by the prosecutor and that's what happened. I obviously wish that none of it had happened, none of it. The thing is, what the prosecutor exhaustively described was also Michael Bryant's own version of what happened, which he didn't provide until after he'd reviewed the Crown's evidence in the case. And about the Crown's evidence, the prosecutor appeared to reject the 19 eyewitnesses who gave many contradictory details to the police, their accounts heavily referenced in the Toronto Police's Collision Reconstruction Report.

At the time, that report wasn't publicly available. Instead, the prosecutor referred to a completely different collection of eyewitnesses who apparently didn't speak with police at all, and saw things very differently to the group that included Victoria and Steve, the construction workers and the parking garage guy. And unlike the collision reconstruction report, that evidence was never permitted for public release. Darcy's adoptive father, Alan Shepard, was in court that day, along with Misty, Darcy's adoptive father Alan Shepard was in court that day, along with Misty, Darcy's

partner. Both were described by CTV News as being visibly emotional after the proceedings. Alan told reporters that quote, I don't know what justice is in this circumstance. I'm not happy with the result, but I don't know what would have in this circumstance. I'm not happy with the result but I don't know what would have made me happy." He added that the people who made the decisions, the lawyers, talked to him with great respect and quote, They've made a decision that I'll accept. Misty was described by CBC News as being a bit more direct. She said,

The message I'm getting is that we deserve to die for riding a bike. There's no repercussions. as being a bit more direct. She said, Behind the scenes, Alan Shepard Sr was aware of the outcome before the court proceedings started. He had been invited to a meeting with Richard Peck and his local representative Mark Sandler, as well as Detective Constable Arthur Lane from Toronto Police Traffic Services and some others. There, Alan Shepard was given the news that the charges were going to be withdrawn, along

with a short presentation of what the Crown was going to be saying in court. But after the proceeding, he couldn't help but feel a bit blindsided. And it's not because of the inconsistencies between the Crown's presentation and the collision reconstruction report, because the report of course wasn't public at the time. And nor did Alan feel blindsided because the charges were withdrawn. He would say in an interview with Canada Land years later that he had accepted that the lawyers would likely arrive at that decision because when considering Darcy's background and history

in the context of the criminal justice system, he could understand why the lawyers might feel that they weren't likely to get a conviction. Instead, his feeling of being blindsided was related to the fact that when explaining a decision to withdraw charges against Michael Bryant he didn't expect to hear such a detailed history of Darcy's childhood. That would have been expected from Michael Bryant's defense team as part of a trial, but not the Crown prosecutor

and certainly not the special independent prosecutor. Allen also did not expect the Crown to imply that while what happened to Darcy in his childhood wasn't his fault, it contributed to him turning into what amounted to an angry criminal who battled addiction. In the eyes of Allen Shepard and Darcy's supporters, turning into what amounted to an angry criminal who battled addiction. In the eyes of Alan Shepard and Darcy's supporters, it amounted again to the completely

unnecessary demonisation of Darcy Alan Shepard, the man who wasn't able to tell his own side of the cyclist and bike messenger community had been gathered outside the courthouse, and the decision dismayed and angered them. Yvonne Bambrick, then executive director of the Toronto Cyclists' Union, was quoted in the Canadian press saying there were too many unanswered questions in the case. Quote, Cyclists get a $110 ticket for not having a bell. A cyclist in this case was killed by a driver who made a wrong decision and there's no

repercussion whatsoever. That just doesn't seem to make much sense or seem fair. MPP Peter Kormos, then the justice critic for the NDP party, predicted that there would be a dark cloud over the case for many years to come. He referred to the questions about conflict of interest, whether the fact that the former attorney general who once appointed judges and oversaw Crown prosecutors would receive special treatment by the justice system. And because the decision to drop the charges wasn't made by a trial of fact like a judge or a jury and none of the evidence was actually put to court, those questions still remain. He said quote, neither Mr. Shepherd got justice nor what many would

argue did Mr. Bryant. After the court proceeding the executive summary of the decision was distributed to the media detailing everything that happened including those six incidents that were accepted by the court as proof of Darcy having a history of aggression towards motorists. The National Post published those pictures of a shirtless Darcy clinging onto the BMW on the front page, with the headline, Darcy Alan Shepard taunted other drivers before Michael Bryant. The Toronto Star posted an article by Robin Doolittle and Jesse McLean,

who interviewed the driver of that BMW. The driver recalled that Darcy charged at his BMW's open window, completely unprovoked. Quote, I'm sitting in my car, the guy comes and starts screaming at me. He added that Darcy was acting aggressively quote insanely sociopathically so. This incident happened in an area of Toronto's financial district that served as a hub for local bike messengers where they congregated while they waited for the next job. The Toronto Star article described tension between the bike messengers and local businesses.

A bike messenger named Nicolette said she was there when Darcy attacked the BMW and she was horrified to see it happen. Quote, The driver was stuck in gridlock or something. I think he said something to Darcy. Darcy said something back. It escalated." She added, Darcy was having a bad month. He was trying to get back in rehab. That

doesn't mean he deserved to die. He was a human being. The media cycle continued. An uncredited opinion piece in the Globe and Mail described Michael Bryan as an everyman, quote, anyone might find himself in his place one day reacting in fear and panic to a wild unexpected aggressor and subject afterwards to police charges and condemnation by the community. When criminal charges were dropped against him yesterday, it was a good day for justice. In a column for the Toronto Star, Rosie DiMano described Darcy Allen Shepard as a quote, quixotic hothead consumed by demons from his awful past. DiMano described Michael Bryant as, merely the hapless vehicle of fate. The cyclist was the provocateur, the driver was the

terrified and disoriented wheel man. Other media outlets reported that the real issue was the need for more bike lanes in Toronto. Writing for the National Post, Peter Kutenbauer described an inherent imbalance between the bicycle and the motorcar and added, quote, Mr. Bryant is not guilty. That does not mean that he used the best possible judgment when Darcy Alan Shepard allegedly gripped the wheel of the Saab. He stated that Michael does not come out of this a hero, but neither should he come out as a felon. Christy Blatchford's opinion was similar. Her piece for the Globe and Mail was titled For Michael Bryant an Extraordinary Kind of Justice. She described the fact that the

defence provided their full file to the Crown as practically unheard of and said that there usually The court ruled that the trial was a preliminary hearing before the trial, where the evidence is called and a decision is made in whether to include it. But this didn't happen here. And then a friend of mine calls up and she says, oh, did you see the news? Michael Bryant's like been acquitted or I don't know if it's acquitted if you've never been to trial, but basically he's got off and charges withdrawn. That's it. So that's of course Victoria. She and her husband, Steve, were the primary two eyewitnesses who saw the altercation right up until the Saab driven by Michael Bryant took off with Darcy Allen Shepard clinging to the side.

First of all, I didn't know the case was even, I just was waiting. I was like, what? How is that possible? And she said, it's on the news. I couldn't believe it. and she said, it's on the news. I couldn't believe it. When we first released the lengthier version of the series in 2022, Victoria was alerted to it. She contacted us and it led to an interview. I wanted to know how she felt as an eyewitness behind the scenes in the days after Darcy Ellen Shepard's death, when the story became a prime feature of the news cycle and the narrative suddenly took a sharp turn. I didn't know the time scale because I was so upset

by the whole thing. I couldn't really, I had to stop listening because suddenly it went like, you know, from this accident happened on Blur Street and Michael Bryant had hit this cyclist to like the cyclist attacked him and he was scared for his life. And, you know, he grabbed his steering wheel and he jumped in the car and all this stuff.

And I was so upset because that's not what happened. So I called the police woman who interviewed me and I said to her, I can't watch the news. This is awful. Where are these witnesses? Who's saying this stuff? Like we were the only people there, you know? You can see that in the video, there was one video where you could see me even with my hand in the air kind of going back and forward showing him the telephone, you know what I mean, you could see my hand. And so I just called her and she was like, you know, it's just the press.

Don't worry, it's just the press. So I stopped kind of listening to it because I found it very upsetting because we'd given our statements, we'd given our 911 call and then suddenly then it's like a whole different story. And I kind of felt that if, you know, they started portraying Darcy in such a terrible way and I kind of thought that if it had been me on the bike, they couldn't really have done that. You know what I mean?

Why do you, why do you say that? Because, you know, if it had been me, cause I'm, I don't have a history of, you know, alcohol addiction or drug addiction. So like if it had been anyone else on the bike, they couldn't have. Switched it around so easily. I found it very upsetting to be honest. I actually started having panic attacks when I was driving, couldn't drive at night. It really affected me. Victoria and Steve expected that they would be contacted by

the Crown about their eyewitness statements and that they would likely have to testify at trial. They waited for months and months. So I asked her, were you ever contacted by Richard Peck or his Toronto agent Mark Sandler? No, we were not contacted by anybody ever again, which is kind of what I couldn't believe. Like, how can you? He's got his like defence, but what about the

prosecution? Like, how can you not interview witnesses? I just couldn't understand it. No, never. That brings us to May 25th, 2010, when a friend told Victoria that the charges had just been withdrawn. I saw red. I was like, this is unbelievable. So I tried to contact the people on the letter,

because I got a letter from Sandler's office, which said you could call at any time to speak to anybody. So I called the policeman on there and they didn't call me back. And I called every day. I wasn't going to let it lie. And finally, I got one of the policemen, he spoke to me for about an hour and he told me that Michael had said he stole the car and I said, I was standing right next to the car. Like literally, I was in disbelief. I'd driven a manual my whole life. I'd never driven an automatic. And I said to the policeman, if you walk in front of someone who drives a manual, if it stalls, you should get out the way

because it's gonna jump forward two car lengths and knock someone off their bike and throw them over. I said to him at the time, you don't think that standing so close to him, if he had stalled his car, I would have seen it and I would have said, he stalled his car. I'd never heard such rubbish in my life. I kind of was so annoyed. So I contacted Alan because I just wanted to tell him that

his son didn't do any of those things that they said he did. So I just wanted him to know that, you know, people were painting such bad aggressive picture of him. And I wanted to say the picture that I had of him in those seconds or minutes was not the big crazy drunk aggressive person. It was actually quiet. I just wanted him to know that and that's why I contacted him. In the aftermath of the decision, cycling advocates Bike Messengers and others started to analyse what had happened. In a piece for BicycleLaw.com, former Olympic cyclist and cycling lawyer Bob Mijonski pointed out that what was most remarkable was not the special prosecutor's decision to drop

the charges because he couldn't win the case. Quote, science defense to the court. We're taking a quick break from today's episode to dive into the brand new season of Only Murders in the Building, brought to you by Disney Plus and Acast Creative. In the spirit of not-so-true true crime, we all understand how satisfying it is to solve a mystery. And as a huge fan myself, Only Murders in the Building is anything but your average mystery or crime drama. It's a quirky and clever series perfect for discerning amateur detectives. And filled with witty dialogue, pop culture references and subtle clues that make solving the mystery a fun challenge each week.

Confession, I often miss most of them on the first watch because I'm distracted by Selena Gomez's stunning outfits. She plays Mabel, a mysterious young woman living in an apartment building called the Arcadian, and she shares the elevator with two eccentric older residents, with Steve Martin and Martin Short playing a washed up actor named Charles and an out of work thespian struggling to pay his bills named Oliver. They bond over a shared obsession with crime podcasts and when a fellow resident of The Arcadian is murdered this unlikely and unqualified trio can't resist snooping around and start their own true crime podcast. I feel seen right now. Their podcast is called Only Murders in the Building and it soon amasses a cult fan base who call themselves The Arcadians.

The writing is smart, meta and self-aware. I loved Tina Fey playing a big-time crime podcaster. In one scene, she records an ad with a promo code, Butchard Bunny, yikes. And two crime podcasts that make a brief appearance on the show are called Don't Ever Go to Clown Camp and Abraca Doomsday. There are so many hilarious moments that caught me off guard. And amazing special guests like Meryl Streep. There's twists and turns, red herring, secrets and new revelations at every corner, as Mabel, Charles and Oliver snoop around, get evicted, arrested, fight and make up.

A millennial and two boomers with a lot to teach each other and a lot to learn. Season 3 ended in a huge cliffhanger and there are three things I'm desperate to find out. Who killed Charles? Who poisoned Winnie? And there's this mysterious Moriarty figure that keeps popping up. Who could that be? I will be watching the opening credit sequences to each episode closely because as fans of the show know, they always include subtle clues and Easter eggs. Only Murders in the Building Season 4 premieres on August 27, exclusively on Disney+. I'll be trying to solve the case each week. You should join us. Don't forget to tune in every Tuesday for a new episode.

Thank you for listening to Canadian True Crime, brought to you in partnership with Disney Plus and Acast Creative. Summer is finally here, the time to get outside, move your body and enjoy the weather. And this season, with Peloton, you define what it means to be a runner. Me, definitely not a runner, but I do enjoy walking with my dogs and nature hikes with my family. And frankly at my age I really should be moving more regularly. So I'm letting Peloton help motivate me to get outside and make the most of these

sunny days at my own pace. Did you know that Peloton has a huge range of class types from their pop runs to their walk and talks, including classes for those who only have 5 or 10 minutes to spare, so you can choose what kind of runner you want to be. Right now I'm starting my weekday mornings with a 10 minute power walk. It gives me a positive, can-do mindset and because it's not a huge chunk of time, it's far less overwhelming of a prospect, so that means I'm likely to continue.

But that's just me. If you're looking to really get a sweat on this summer, check out Palaton's outdoor guided runs. Your run, your way, means being able to customize by selecting your difficulty level, your favorite expert level instructor and music. And for those really muggy days, just tap into the Paloton app and take to the treadmill. From sprints, walks and hikes to pilates, yoga, strength classes and more, no matter where you are in your fitness journey, Peloton has everything you need to get outside, show up as you are and move at your own pace. Call yourself a runner with Peloton at onepeloton.ca slash running. In the months after the court proceeding, Alan Shepard tried to make sense of what had

happened and spoke with two of the main investigating officers from Toronto Police Traffic Services, Detective Constables Arthur Lane and Lester Leller. They told Alan about the collision reconstruction report and Alan knew that he had to continue to go down the rabbit hole. After a few more months, he finally got the transcript of the court proceeding. Only the 11 page executive summary had been released to the media, but this was the full 68 page transcript. Alan had been in court that day and had seen and heard the presentation, but he was distraught and emotional at the time.

When reading the full transcript with a clearer head, it became evident that there were holes and outright errors that he hadn't noticed. Alan Shepard would write that he understood and accepted that the Crown Prosecutor does not represent the victims or survivors of a crime, nor does it speak for them. The role of the Crown is to speak for the community as a whole, a function that is a matter of public duty

that excludes any notion of winning or losing. The puzzling question was, how was this strategy to minimize what happened to Darcy that night, considered to be in the public interest or the best thing for the community? It just didn't make any sense. Allen had since been joined by others, including a large number of eagle-eyed members of the Toronto Bike Messenger community. They all got together and felt that not only was something amiss, but something seemed significantly wrong with how the case had played out,

and it resulted in Allen applying to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to see if he could get any more information related to the case. Those who are familiar with cases from the United States would also be familiar with freedom of information, also referred to as FOIA. But in Canada, it works differently. Rather than applying for the full file, a person in Canada can apply for specific pieces

of information or documents. But the protection of privacy requirement needs to be satisfied for every identifiable person or entity. So that's why, for example, we don't have the transcript or audio of Michael Bryant's 911 call, because he didn't give permission. There were other 911 calls made as well, but those people didn't give permission either, nor did any other eyewitnesses who gave statements. The ones that you've heard from Steve, Victoria, the parking garage guy and the two construction workers all gave

permission. The rest were gleaned through that collision reconstruction report. So after the various freedom of information and protection of privacy requests had been filed, the wait began. Three months after that court decision was the one year anniversary of Darcy Allen Shepard's death and a memorial ride was held in Toronto. Alan Shepard travelled from Edmonton for the event and Darcy's partner Misty also attended,

telling Jennifer Yang for the Toronto Star that their goal was to remember a lost friend and draw attention to cyclist safety. The event, which was attended by dozens of cyclists, was also a place for venting about the decision to withdraw charges. One of Darcy's friends named Brian brought a ghost bike, a bike painted white and placed at locations where cyclists have been killed, as a memorial. As Brian locked the bike to a pole near the spot where Darcy lost his life, he said he was disappointed with the legal system. Quote, Darcy's been failed by the system so many times before,

and this has got to be the biggest failure. Alan Shepard said he was still working through his grief. Quote, I'm prepared still to accept that he did initiate the incident but I need a better explanation of how that happened than what we've got so far. Alan said that he felt no vitriol towards Michael Bryant but would like him to acknowledge that he did play some role in Darcy's death, whatever that may have been. In fact, just the opposite would continue to happen.

Now that the charges had been withdrawn, it was clear that his crisis PR firm Navigator was now focused on restoring his image. As you'll recall, it had been reported that their services came at a rate of $600 an hour, a rate that Michael Bryant was fortunate to be able to pay. Just two weeks after the court proceeding, Toronto Life published a long-form article written by Leah McLaren with the headline, Michael Bryant's very bad year, his life on bail, how he got off and his surprise comeback. The piece details Michael's version of the story, the encounter with the angry cyclist tossing the garbage. Meeting him again at the mid-block pedestrian crossway, the Saab stalling twice, and Michael's panic. The article did at least acknowledge that Darcy didn't just

land on the hood. It described the Saab hitting him hard enough that he toppled onto the hood. But the rest of that paragraph states, he wasn't seriously injured, but he became enraged. Elsewhere in the article, Michael provided an explanation for why he had a suit delivered before he was released from custody to awaiting media. The former attorney general said his kids were used to seeing him on TV in a suit, so if he suddenly appeared in a t-shirt, they would have known that something was amiss. The article also described the role of his wife, Susan Abramovich, describing her as one of the most influential entertainment lawyers in the country, someone who spent that next day, quote, attacking the situation like the high-functioning, crisis-managing type-A personality that she is. She'd already spoken to the city's best criminal

lawyers, reassured friends, consulted with associates, fended off the press and talked to Jamie Watt, head of the PR firm Navigator, who, being a friend, offered up his services for free. Leah McLaren's Toronto Life article then goes into a detailed background of Michael's history, how he liked to point out that he grew up in a family in which politicians were respected public servants, insisting that government was not something to be sneered at, but an agent for good. The author commented, quote, It's the kind of statement he's known for, idealistic and slightly superior.

The article details his impressive education, his silver medal for the second highest marks at Osgoode Hall Law School, how he was only one of 27 students from the best law schools in the country to be selected to clerk at the Supreme Court of Canada. And then how he quote, laid the groundwork for a career in politics the old fashioned way by cultivating relationships with people in power. Michael Bryant was described as someone who built up a big fat Rolodex. He was a master of managing his public image, someone who actively courted the press and wasn't afraid of making controversial decisions

like banning pit bulls and destroying cars that had been modified for street racing. He was described as someone who liked to appear tough on crime. The author wrote that Michael Bryant's fall from grace was as stunningly dramatic as his ultimate vindication in court, and apparently most who knew him believed that a political comeback was on the cards. Quote,

Those close to him say he is a changed man, full of contrition, humility, and lingering contempt for his cavalier former self. The author ended the piece by stating, quote, His resurrection is already underway. When Bryant appeared at a business luncheon at the Royal York the week after the charges were dropped, the room gave him a spontaneous standing evasion. As Alan Shepard continued to wait on a response to his Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act requests, there were more developments.

It had been reported that Michael Bryant had written a memoir. You've heard that memoir mentioned several times throughout this series. It's called 28 seconds a true story of addiction tragedy and hope. The promotional copy states that the book is about how a night that began with a dinner to celebrate his wedding anniversary ended in a jail cell for Michael Bryant. The charges were eventually dropped but nothing could undo what had happened to Shepard or Bryant. Several media outlets supported the launch of this book by publishing excerpts of it, Michael Bryant's direct version of what happened, a version that came from him this time and not the

special independent prosecutor, a version that contained even more details about what happened that night from his point of view. He wrote about Darcy's life, stating that quote, for most of his troubled 33 years, Darcy Shepherd had fought addiction to alcohol and crack cocaine. On this day, his string of eight sober days had come once again to a dispiriting end. He talks about his first encounter with Darcy, the encounter that came before the altercation at the mid-block pedestrian crossway. He wrote, then in something of an athletic marvel, despite an alcohol level more than twice the legal limit, he did figure eights curb to curb along Bloor Street

as drivers like myself hung back, refusing to take his dare to pass him, until he finally forced a vehicle over to the side of the road and I drove on by. Again, no other motorists or passengers came forward to report any such disturbances, like a cyclist forcing them off the road, on the same stretch of road just minutes before the incident that would cause Darcy's death. Michael Bryant then states, It was Darcy Shepard who, moments later, drove within inches of my driver's side door, as our Saab was stopped a little farther west on Bloor Street at an intersection near Avenue Road.

It was Darcy Shepherd who then pulled directly in front of our car and spun his bike around to confront us, sneering at me. Now what are you gonna do? The 28 seconds began." End quote. This statement is completely contradictory to both eyewitness statements and the surveillance footage. Even though the footage is grainy, it clearly shows Darcy facing forward the entire time. Michael

wrote that as he waited at the lights he felt trapped, describing Darcy as big, drunk and raging. Quote, I wondered if he had a weapon on him. Michael wrote that Darcy's backpack contained a heavy bike lock, which is a new detail, and apparently he hurled it at the car and it went sailing over Michael's head. He states that as he tried to drive around Darcy, the man got up and chased them, leaping at the Saab. He wrote that the car suddenly swerved sharply to the left, almost 45 degrees, and while he had no recollection how it happened, he wrote that Darcy must have grabbed the wheel. Quote, in wrestling for control of the car, we crossed to the south side of the street.

He then describes pushing Darcy off the car door and him pushing back. Quote, then he started climbing in the car. Susan grew louder and more frantic. And then he was gone. Quote, all of a sudden he just wasn't there. I didn't see him fall. I heard a sound, maybe a groan. Michael Bryant described feeling relief, but then he didn't know what he should do.

Quote, should I stop right now? I shouldn't leave the scene of an accident, but I wanted to get away from this guy. Is he coming? I was not going to stop the car and let him come at us again after finally getting away. There was no one to help. I wanted to get somewhere safe." He then wrote about the 911 call he made when he arrived just around the corner at the Park Hyatt Hotel. When the police arrived he assumed they were there to rescue them, but when the constable got out of the cruiser, he realised that something was wrong. Michael Bryant described being manhandled, pushed and

poked by the constable, who told him that he was in a lot of trouble. Michael wrote that it wasn't registering, quote, Why was I in trouble? I felt like we just had to get that have you been drinking part over with and then reason would prevail and he would give me an update. I was imagining that Darcy Shepherd was in handcuffs right now. He described being flabbergasted when instead they put him in handcuffs. When the book 28 Seconds was released, Michael Bryan embarked on a media tour to promote it. Jennifer Wells wrote an article for the Toronto Star, reporting that this was Michael Bryan's first time speaking with a journalist since Darcy's death. As you'll recall, she was also the one he spoke to in the months before when he said that road

rage was back in his life. In this article, she wrote that he could have let the story rest, so she asked him why did he write the book and his response was, quote, It's an offering. That's what it is. She added the qualifier that it was an offering to other high functioning alcoholics deluded into thinking they have nothing in common with the drunk on the street. This was the first time that Michael Bryant had confirmed he was an alcoholic, how he had given up drinking several years

before Darcy's death. And in this book, he said he saw many Darcy Allen shepherds in the 12-step recovery rooms he attends, quote, There's a lot of tattoos and hoarse voices and close-cropped hair and scars, bones out of joint and that look of indescribable pain on their face. He said that when he first saw Darcy throwing garbage, quote, I knew he was an alcohol addict the first second I saw him. In another interview for CTV News, he told Vanessa Grieco that many had begged him not to write the book for fear that he would reignite

debate of Darcy's death. And to that he said quote, to be accused of killing someone is awful. But on the other hand that's not a good reason not to do a book because I might subject myself to criticism. I wanted to try and share my experiences and hope around recovering from that crucible." The morning show's Lisa Fromer asked him why he hasn't reached out to Alan Shepard, Darcy's father. And he replied, quote, I don't know why. I haven't been able to figure out what I might say or do that might provide him with comfort because I don't want to cause him any more discomfort. I'm terribly sorry for what happened to his son. A time will come and an opportunity will

come where I will be able to say something." In his memoir, Michael Bryant also criticises the Toronto Police for rushing to judgement on his guilt. He wrote, It is not unusual for Toronto police services to wait weeks or even months before deciding how they will proceed with such charges. In my case, the police couldn't wait a new cycle. I got the opposite of special treatment. Michael Bryan also pointed a finger at the Toronto police,

apparently in reference to the Crown's separate collection of witnesses who reported contradictory details to the 19 eyewitness accounts included in the collision reconstruction report. Bryan accused the police of failing to follow up with these witnesses, who could corroborate his side of the story about Darcy Ellen Shepard being aggressive and in a rage. Toronto Police spokesperson Mark Pugash denied they failed to return calls from potential witnesses. In an article by Kelly Grant for the Globe and Mail, he also stated that the force has never received any complaint from the defence about how Bryant was treated. Quote,

This Globe and Mail article also described how Michael Bryant's legal defence cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, a bill that he expected to continue paying off. And while he didn't expect sales of his book to add much of a dent to that, he said that if there were any proceeds, he planned to donate it to the Pine River Institute, an addictions treatment centre for adolescents. The article points out that despite Michael Bryant's resulting financial woes, he details in the book how he tried to help Darcy Ellen Shepard's two eldest children, the ones who were in foster care, to gain visitation with their mother. He said he arranged a high-profile family lawyer to work pro bono on the case and paid the firm's out-of-pocket costs himself. Michael Bryant wrote about the fact that his legal strategy was developed in the days and weeks after Darcy Ellen Shepard's death,

and going to trial was the last thing he and his legal team wanted. They designed a strategy to achieve that result and as we know it worked. But if another special independent prosecutor had been appointed and the case did go to trial, what might have happened? The only way that his full version of events could have been entered into evidence is if Michael Bryant testified in court in his own defense. And if it did go to trial, it's likely that some or all of the eyewitnesses would have provided sworn testimony as well, like Victoria and Steve, the parking garage guy and the construction workers. On cross-examination, Michael Bryant would have had to explain why his account of the night was so different. We'll obviously never know how this would have gone,

but perhaps a clue can be found in one of the interviews he gave in promoting his book. One of the main features of Michael's media tour was an almost hour-long CBC interview with high-profile Canadian business journalist Amanda Lang. He's clearly very uncomfortable most of the time, as he's asked to recount his version of events verbally in detail. The interview could hardly be compared to what would have been a cross-examination, but there were a few hard-hitting questions thrown his way.

You can find a link to watch it in the show notes. For example, when he mentioned that Darcy Allen Shepard took a swing at him as he rode past, Amanda asked, took a swing at you why? Michael essentially said he didn't know. Another question she asked was quote, there's a moment that you detail in the book where the car turned, the wheel turned. In the book you say you don't know who turned it, whether it was Darcy or you. Michael replied that it was one of two things, either he turned it for reasons that he can't figure out,

or Darcy grabbed the wheel and turned it. He fumbled with his words a bit before adding, quote, So that was 2012. The following year Alan Shepard received the full collision reconstruction report. As he read it in detail, taking it all in, he started to realize that what was in the report was vastly different to what had been presented in court that day. Alan saw that several eyewitnesses painted Bryant's behavior in a harsh light, yet none of that information had been presented in

court. When Alan got to the end of the report, the conclusion, he stopped in his tracks. It read, quote, Mr. Bryant and Mr. Shepherd shared responsibility in the death of Mr. Shepherd. It read, And then, several sentences down, it states, Alan Shepard had stated many times that given the circumstances and his son's background, he knew that getting a conviction would have been difficult. In fact, he did expect the charges to be dropped. But he would write that he was amazed at the degree to which some of the new material challenges the version of events given in court that day by the special independent prosecutor Richard Peck.

Quote, I emphatically reject Mr. Peck's explanation of his decision. Information obtained through freedom of information access does not and cannot support the exoneration implicitly given to Mr Bryant by Mr Peck. Darcy's loved ones and supporters attended an event at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto to inform the press and the public about the many apparent inconsistencies between the information in the Collision Reconstruction Report and Richard Peck's explanation for withdrawing the charges against Michael Bryant. A press release was distributed to the media and the event was attended by cycling

advocates, bike messengers, other advocates and some reporters. Alan Shepard, then 75 years old, traveled to Toronto from his home in Edmonton. He told the crowd he wasn't looking for vengeance, he was not calling for the case to be reopened, nor did he have any objection to the charges being dropped. He accepted from the start that Michael Bryant would likely claim self-defense, and he knew that Darcy's history would likely claim self-defence, and he knew

that Darcy's history would likely have been used to raise doubt about Michael's guilt. Alan Shepard said that the documents they received so far raised serious questions, questions that they hoped the Crown files for the case might be able to answer. And they had applied for those files as well, but the request in that case was denied. Allen said he was appealing that decision, but he was told not to get his hopes up. He added, Surely justice requires more transparency and accountability than that.

He told those gathered that he recognizes that the Crown represents society, the community, all of us, including Michael Bryant. And while he knows that the Crown must find a balance between conflicting expectations, that balance must recognise that Darcy Alan Shepard was just as much a part of society as Michael Bryant was. Again, Alan Shepard clarified that the injustice he saw was not the decision to drop the charges. He expected that to happen. When a Crown prosecutor decides to withdraw charges, it's usually because there's no reasonable chance of conviction and they aren't required to

provide any details or specific reasons why. In fact, it's customary for them not to. But for some reason in this case, the special independent prosecutor broke with that custom, choosing to give a full presentation to explain his decision. And as Alan Shepard put it the way that decision was explained quote exonerates Mr. Bryant of all responsibility and accountability and an effect justifies what he did to my son without the transparency necessary to support such a conclusion. That was the injustice. He called on the media to investigate further,

but not with malice. The timing was not good. May 23, 2013 happened to be a big news day for Toronto. It was just after allegations had surfaced that there was a video showing the Toronto mayor, Rob Ford, smoking crack cocaine. But there was one journalist at the press conference who decided the story was worth looking into more. Jennifer Wells would write an e-book or long-form article called Lost Boy.

The Toronto Star paid for their own copy of the Collision Reconstruction Report, and Jennifer Wells would write that it shed striking new light on the details of Darcy's death, details that appear to contradict the version of events presented by Michael Bryant in his book. The Lost Boy piece is long, detailed and an amazing read. There's a link to it in the show notes. Jennifer Wells also met with and interviewed many other people involved in the tragedy, including Victoria.

By this point, they had given permission for their video statements and 911 calls to be released to Ellen Sheppard. And so Jennifer Wells viewed them as well. After noticing that their statements were not consistent with the Crown's repeated assertions that Darcy was enraged and acting aggressively throughout, she got clarification from Victoria and then asked the special prosecutor's local representative Mark Sandler for a comment. He told her that he remembered doing an analysis of Steve and Victoria's statements

and quote, if I recall correctly, there were some things in the statements that were undermined by other things we had. He acknowledged his response wasn't helpful and he no longer has the file, but then he posed a question. Even if you were to accept the veracity or accuracy of their statements, what would that mean for the Crown? His answer was, quote, Let's assume for the purposes of a discussion that Mr. Bryant came into moderately slight contact with his bicycle, and that was what spurred Mr. Shepherd to go ballistic or get aggressive in some way toward Mr. Bryant. It still wouldn't be criminal negligence causing death or dangerous driving causing

death. Jennifer Wells also noted that Michael's version of the story was that Darcy was in a rage before there was any contact between the car and the bike. And in his memoir, Michael had written quote it was Darcy Shepherd who then pulled directly in front of our car and spun his bike around to confront us sneering at me. The journalist had contacted Michael Bryant for an interview but he declined so she asked him for clarification on this point and he responded by email.

This is what he said, quote, Since Victoria and Steve were standing right there watching this happen, I asked her if she saw Darcy spin his bike around to face the Saab. No, no, his bike was like facing forward the whole time and he hadn't he literally just turned his head, kind of looked back and said, no, you want me to move, don't you? And then looked forward. Nothing else. Michael Bryant ended his response to Toronto star journalist Jennifer

Wells question by referring to Richard Peck's address to the court, specifically where it says, One of the largely consistent themes is that Mr. Shepard was acting loudly and aggressively confronting Mr. Bryant while he and his wife remained passive. There were never any details given about how Darcy was acting loudly and aggressively. Was he yelling, being physically threatening or something else? I asked Victoria for her recollection. Did you think he was big, drunk and raging? No, no, not at all.

It was quiet. Like I said, he literally came up, rode in front, went in front of him. And I was standing so close, I didn't notice anything at all was happening. But that's what was so weird about the whole thing. Like Michael and his wife were quiet, Darcy was quiet. The only words that I heard were, you want me to move, don't you? I also asked Victoria about a part of Michael's memoir, 28 Seconds, where he wrote what happened next.

Quote, It went sailing over my head. I put the car in first gear and tried to drive around him." There was an obvious implication that Darcy was intentionally using his bag with the bike lock as a weapon. The bag actually landed at Victoria's feet and she was the one who picked it up. Now obviously there is no way to know what was in Darcy's backpack or what his intention was when throwing it. But since Michael Bryant gave his perception of Darcy's intention, he is victorious as a counterbalance. But remember, neither have been tested at trial.

So when Darcy threw his backpack, did you feel like he was throwing it in the direction of Michael Bryant? No, me, 100 like he was throwing it in the direction of Michael Bryant? No, me, 100%. He was throwing it at me. He was looking at me. So when you picked the backpack up, did it feel like it might have had something heavy in it, like a bike lock? No. How would you know? If I threw my bag at you, you wouldn't know it was in it. I didn't know what was in the bag. And it didn't cross my mind anything was in the bag. It wasn't violent, like it really wasn't violent at all. It was quiet,

it was it was it was actually really bizarre. Back to Michael Bryant's description in his memoir. Outraged, he raced towards the front of our car. I remember Susan screaming, Oh my God, over and over. Chasing after us, he leapt at the Saab as if in slow motion. Shepherd landed hip first to break his fall. The way you see stuntmen as cops do the hood slide on crime shows, it made a crunching noise. I felt the impact of a man over 200 pounds

landing on my car. He then grabbed the windshield wiper and bent it back toward him. I felt the impact of a man over 200 pounds landing on my car. He then grabbed the windshield wiper and bent it back toward him. He began pulling himself toward me, hand over hand, as if the wiper were a rope. The strength of the man was extraordinary. He seemed almost superhuman. His upper torso was now on the hood's edge, driver's side, with the car still moving forward. He swung around, put his right arm inside the door, his left armpit around the side

mirror. He held up his legs, a feat of some strength, no doubt assisted by the adrenaline that, I later learned, Darcy so often sought. The car suddenly swerved sharply to the left, almost 45 degrees. I have no recollection how that happened. He must have grabbed the wheel, and thenwerved sharply to the left, almost 45 degrees. I have no recollection how that happened. He must have grabbed the wheel. In wrestling for control of the car, we crossed over to the south side of the street.

At around the same time as Bryant's memoir 28 Seconds was published, he also joined the roster at the National Speakers Bureau, an agency that represents top keynote speakers and professional speakers for corporate events. Here's the summary of his chosen topic. Quote, In this gripping presentation, Bryant chronicles the fateful aftermath of that late summer evening in August 2009, an evening when everything changed. Michael Bryant appeared to lay relatively low for a few years when it came to public life.

In 2016, LawAndStyle.ca published a piece called Whatever Happened to Michael Bryant by Daniel Fish. In it, Michael is quoted as saying that he had no idea that innocent people were every day being treated like guilty people even though he'd been the Attorney General of Ontario. Quote, I had no idea that the presumption of innocence is a joke. His experience led to a decision to become a criminal lawyer and as law and style put it build a practice that would serve those on the bottom rung of the socio-economic ladder."

In 2015, Michael Bryant had begun working for Legal Aid Ontario as a duty council, representing people in bail courts who can't afford their own. The piece details how his own life changed. Bryant's marriage collapsed, his brother died, and he grappled with post-traumatic stress disorder from the accident. According to the Wikipedia page, Michael Bryant separated from his wife Susan Abramovich in December 2010, seven months after the charges were withdrawn. In that time, he said he became a regular volunteer at Sanctuary Ministries, a Toronto

charity that helps people living on the streets, a charity that he was told Darcy Ellen Shepard used to frequent. In a 2018 CBC News series called Do Over, Michael Bryant claimed his work with Sanctuary helped him deal with Darcy Ellen Shepard's death. Quote, That's something that is just with me all the time. He was a human being and he lost his life and that's something I can't undo and can't go back. So what do I do today? That's how I'm living. Before long, his listing with the Speakers Bureau had netted him a TEDx Talk in Toronto.

The talk is available on YouTube and is titled, Becoming Who You Are Meant To Be. The following year, 2019, Darcy's father, Alan Shepard, responded by writing a piece for Canada Land with the headline, Michael Bryant did a TEDx talk about how killing my son helped his personal growth. That same year, the Canadian Lawyer magazine named Michael Bryant one of the year's 25 most influential lawyers. The former Ontario Attorney General was appointed the Executive Director of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and more recently the Chief Executive Officer of Legal Aid BC.

Special Independent Prosecutor Richard Peck was the recipient of the 2014 G Arthur Martin Criminal Justice Medal, a prestigious award for outstanding contributions to criminal justice. His local associate on the Bryant case, Mark Sandler, was awarded the medal the following year, and in 2023, it was awarded to Bryant's criminal defense lawyer, Marie Hennan. Her public profile had continued to rise and she successfully defended former CBC radio host, Jian Gomezi, against charges of sexual assault and choking a woman. She also wrote an interesting essay reflecting on her time spent on the Michael Bryant case.

Titled Split Seconds Matter, published in the 2014 book Tough Crimes by Christopher Dudley Evans and Laureen Scheiber. Hennan wrote, quote, The truth is that Michael Bryant was well loved by the legal community. Many identified with him, many knew him personally, and many were utterly grief-stricken over his situation. The pressure to get the right result was, to be honest, overwhelming at times.

Nothing in law school gets one ready for this amount of scrutiny. Alan Shepard put in multiple applications under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. And while he did receive a number of files and documents, there were a lot more that he didn't receive. In withdrawing the charges against Michael Bryant,

the prosecutor had referred to a separate investigation and a separate collection of eyewitnesses who apparently didn't speak with police and saw things differently to how the incident was documented in the collision reconstruction report. The Crown's separate video experts viewed the grainy surveillance videos and reached a different conclusion to what Steve and Victoria reported seeing in person just a few metres away. And that's Scopeledi evidence, those six motorists who reported having a prior encounter with an angry cyclist believed to be Darcy Ellen Shepard. And it should be stated again that none of this evidence was put before court and neither was the other evidence like the collision reconstruction report or the eyewitness accounts like Steve and Victoria, none of

it was tested by a trial of fact, a judge or a jury, but all of it deserved to be. The Crown's evidence remains a mystery hidden behind a firewall. Although Alan Shepard did receive some important documents and files from his Freedom of Information requests, many were denied. He tried to appeal those decisions, but soon found himself at the end of the line. He was advised that if he wants to proceed, the only way is to get a lawyer and sue the government for access to that firewalled information. We see mainstream media outlets do this all the time.

Like in the unsolved case of murdered pharmaceutical billionaires Barry and Honey Sherman. The Toronto Star's Freedom of Information request was denied. So they sued the government for the hidden documents, arguing that it was in the public interest to report on that information. The Toronto Star was successful and the documents were released. But Alan Shepard is not a major media outlet with a robust legal department. Hiring a lawyer to sue the government is an extremely costly process. Alan Shepard still lives in Edmonton and he's now in his mid 80s.

Earlier on in this series I described him as someone who's always been full of love and empathy for his late son while pragmatically acknowledging the shades of light and dark in Darcy's past. It was Alan's brutal honesty that first caught my attention when I came across an update to the case, which was his 2015 interview on the Canada Land podcast. Alan was of course aware that I was doing this series and while he said he was available if I had any questions, he encouraged me to research the case myself and come to my own conclusions, which is how I prefer to work anyway. I asked him what he would most want people to know about Darcy.

Well, what I want people to know about Darcy is that he was a complex individual, that he was a charmer, which meant that people liked him easily, and that he was smart. But at the same time, he used those gifts that he had inappropriately at times. He did break the law, and he broke the law consistently. And I'm not going to excuse him over that. I went along at the beginning with the decision

because of all that I knew about my son's past and how he dealt with me and how he dealt with other people. And I made the mistake of judging him by his past. So I learned from talking to Steve in Victoria and hearing their statements, from reading the reconstruction report, from talking to cyclists who have been in some of them in

similar situations, that my son actually acted surprisingly well in that circumstance. My final question to Alan Shepard was this. Has Michael Bryan ever apologised to you for his role in Darcy's death or reached out at all? He reached out to me a couple of years afterward and I in fact did meet with him. Mr. Bryant did not apologize in any way to me that was meaningful. He thinks my son, his lawyer and the Crown prosecutor, think my son as some kind of demon out of hell that he was unfortunate to have encountered. The only apology he can make is that, yes, I made some mistakes.

Your son made some mistakes. I regret what I did and I'm sorry. Darcy Alan Shepard was not a perfect victim, and there's no doubt that Michael Bryant and his wife must have been terrified that night when Darcy latched on to their car. But the best available evidence that we, the public, has access to about this case shows that at the very least both men were at fault. Both men shared responsibility for the incident that caused Darcy's death. Again from the report written by two collision reconstruction experts with

input from around 50 other law enforcement officers with the Toronto Police, quote, Mr. Shepherd died as a result of his injury sustained in the collision. Mr. Bryant's final actions in the third collision sequence led to the death of Mr. Shepherd. Mr. Bryant's failure to stop the Saab, when Mr. Shepherd deliberately hung on to the side of the Saab and driving his vehicle on the opposite side of the road in an attempt to dislodge Mr. Shepherd from from his vehicle gave the appearance of a deliberate act according to witnesses. Mr Shepherd also is responsible for his actions that led up to the concluding incident.

All of these incidents were unfortunate and avoidable. Justice was most definitely not seen to be done in this case. But perhaps the system is working exactly as it's supposed to. And that's a terrifying thought. Thanks for listening to this special presentation to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the death of Darcy Allen Shepard. If you're in the Toronto area, please join us for the 15th anniversary memorial gathering organised by Allen Shepard and Darcy's loved ones.

It'll be held on Saturday, August 31 at 3pm at the Ghost Bike near Yonge and Bloor where he died. Darcy's father Alan Shepard and other loved ones will be there. I'll be there. Bike messenger and cycling advocates as well as some press will all be there. So please join us if you can at 3pm on Saturday August 31. The location of the ghost bike is opposite the Tiffany & Co. at 151 Bloor Street West in Toronto. Details in the show notes and on the website. Transparency and openness is important to us so we've put all the statements, reports, videos and other information we refer to in this series on our website at canadiantruecrime.ca slash Darcy.

You can review and compare all of the documents and check out further analysis including on the Darcy Ellen Shepard Files blog created by Darcy's father, Ellen, and the Bryant Watch blog maintained by cycling advocate Joe Hendry. Special thanks to Ellen and Joe, Darcy's former partner Misty and eyewitnesses Victoria and Steve. Thanks also to author Mary Fairhurst-Breen who edited the original series down to this shorter version. Initial research was by Hayley Gray with production assistance by Aviva Lasard and Eileen McFarlane. Additional research writing, media analysis, interviews and sound design was by me. Eric Crosby voiced the disclaimer, music by Epidemic Sound and Blue Dot Sessions and the

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