Tourist dies after attack by panhandlers
MATTHEW TREVISAN
August 13, 2007
A tourist to Toronto succumbed to his injuries on the weekend after being attacked by an enraged gang of panhandlers in a downtown neighbourhood.
Four panhandlers already facing several assault charges will likely see those charges upgraded after Ross Hammond, of St. Catharines, died of his injuries Saturday, police say.
Councillor Michael Thompson said yesterday that panhandling in Toronto is "essentially out of control."
It has now come to a point, he said, where an innocent person has died.
"I'm saddened obviously to hear that it's come to this," said Mr. Thompson (Ward 37, Scarborough Centre), who was attacked by a panhandler in Nathan Phillips Square in April, 2006.
"It's not unexpected. I think it will happen again if nothing is done."
The city is in the midst of a pilot project to study aggressive panhandling. However, the project doesn't cover the area near Trinity Bellwoods Park, where Mr. Hammond was stabbed.
Mr. Hammond reportedly underwent several operations before dying early Saturday morning after receiving multiple stab wounds during an altercation at about 12:30 a.m. Thursday.
Toronto police said Mr. Hammond and a friend were walking west on Queen Street West toward Niagara Street when two men and two women in their early 20s approached them and asked for money.
They refused, and a verbal confrontation quickly turned into a physical melee. Mr. Hammond, 32, was stabbed in the chest and back, and some of the accused also received minor stab wounds.
One witness said he saw one person sprinting across Queen Street with a knife in his hand. He reportedly attempted to get away by jumping onto a moving taxi, which was left bloodied, in full view of two streetcars.
Reached yesterday at the couple's home in St. Catharines, Mr. Hammond's widow, Kara, said any family statement will be made through Toronto police.
"This is not a good time," she said.
Sergeant Tim Burrows said he didn't expect the incident to affect how visitors view the city with respect to panhandlers.
"I would say 99 per cent of our panhandlers, though some could get aggressive in asking for money ... know their place and what they're doing, and don't affect the majority of the public."
However, at Mayor David Miller's executive committee meeting in late May, restaurateurs said panhandlers routinely steal beer, food and tips from sidewalk patios. A downtown Tim Hortons owner told the committee she was left bleeding after she was slapped in the face by a "panhandler" she asked to leave her doughnut shop.
A two-month city pilot project in which city workers work with people panhandling between 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. in the area from Spadina Avenue to Jarvis Street, and from Yorkville Avenue to Queens Quay, concludes on Sept. 30. A report to the executive committee is due in 2008.
When approached by panhandlers, the public shouldn't make eye contact and continue walking past them, Sgt. Burrows said.
The four accused of no fixed address appeared in court Friday, but could be facing murder charges this week, police said.
On Friday, Sarah McDermit, 22, was charged with aggravated assault, assault causing bodily harm, assaulting a peace officer and obstructing a peace officer. Jeremy Woolley, 21, was charged with aggravated assault, assault causing bodily harm and obstructing a peace officer. Nicole Kish, 21, was charged with aggravated assault and assault causing bodily harm, and Douglas Fresh, 22, was charged with aggravated assault.
