Michael Bryant (politician)

On the evening of August 31, 2009, Bryant and his wife were driving home in his convertible after celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary. They passed a cyclist, Darcy Allan Sheppard, who according to an interview with Bryant was tossing garbage and holding up traffic by executing figure eights on his bike.[26] As they neared a pedestrian crossing Sheppard pulled in front of Bryant's vehicle at a red light. Subsequent events were captured by security cameras.[27]

According to Bryant, his vehicle stalled when he stopped behind Sheppard. Bryant's car then lurched forward from his attempts to restart the vehicle, which brought the car close to or in contact with Sheppard's tire. Camera footage of the incident was inconclusive. The Crown suggested no damage to the bicycle's rear wheel rim was evident. Witnesses said that Sheppard confronted Bryant and his wife "loudly and aggressively" while they "remained passive". Bryant's next driving maneuver resulted in Sheppard ending up on the hood of the car: the car travelled 30 feet in 2.5 seconds, at between 9 and 13.4 km/h, and brakes were applied after 1 second. According to Bryant, he was looking down at the time, trying to restart the vehicle, and applied the brakes when he saw Sheppard on the hood. The Crown suggested that there was no evidence Sheppard was seriously injured at this time and there was not enough evidence to justify a separate charge based upon Bryant's driving to this point.[28]

The fatality occurred when Bryant drove away while Sheppard was holding onto the side of the vehicle. Witnesses reported that Sheppard reached into Bryant's convertible and grabbed either Bryant or the car's steering wheel.[23][29] At no point did Bryant attempt to stop.[24][30][31] The car then veered into the opposite lanes, which caused Sheppard to strike a roadside fire hydrant. The collision knocked him off the car and his head hit the pavement.[26] Bryant drove away from the scene to a nearby hotel. Three minutes later, he called 9-1-1.[32] Sheppard later died of his injuries in hospital. The police did not thoroughly investigate whether Bryant was driving under the influence.[33][34][30]

Bryant was released the next day by the police on his own recognizance without a bail hearing. In a public statement, he maintained that he was innocent of the charges and extended condolences to Sheppard's family. The terms of Bryant's release required him to abstain from driving, surrender his passport and remain in Ontario.[35] He was represented by Marie Henein.[36] Bryant also resigned as CEO of Invest Toronto, saying that the arrest would act as a distraction for the corporation.[35]

Bryant's actions and arrest were a subject of controversy in Canadian media. Bryant hired a public relations firm, Navigator Ltd., while a campaign emerged on blogs and social networks that attempted to cast Sheppard in a favourable light.[37] A Twitter account run by Navigator was countered by another Twitter account set up by public relations professional Don Wiedman. On YouTube, an anonymous user posted videos of the surveillance footage broadcast by CTV News, CityTV News, and CBC News.[38]

The Ministry of the Attorney General appointed British Columbia's Richard Peck as the prosecutor to avoid any conflict-of-interest, as Bryant had appointed judges when he served as Attorney General of Ontario.[39] His first court date was scheduled for October 19, 2009.[40] The matter was adjourned six times.[41][42][43][44][45]

On May 25, 2010, prosecutor Richard Peck withdrew all charges against Bryant stemming from the incident, noting there was "no reasonable prospect of conviction".[46] Peck said that "[Bryant] was attacked by a man who unfortunately was in a rage. [Bryant] was legally justified in his attempt to get away", and noted that Sheppard had run-ins with six other motorists in the same month before his encounter with Bryant,[47] and was witnessed throwing traffic cones in front of cars at the corner of Bloor and Yonge less than twenty minutes before the incident.[28] The decision to withdraw charges was criticised by Marli Epp, a spokesperson for the Toronto Bike Messenger Association and Yvonne Bambrick, Executive Director of the Toronto Cyclists Union.[48]

In August 2012, Bryant published a book, 28 Seconds, his memoir of Sheppard's death and of Bryant's own experience with and recovery from alcoholism.[6]