Hamilton NDP MP confronted over illegal parking job

[spaminator]

Hamilton NDP MP confronted over illegal parking job
Bryan Passifiume
Published:
January 3, 2020
Updated:
January 3, 2020 4:05 PM EST
A van belonging to Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green parked illegally at Limeridge Mall in Hamilton on Dec. 21, 2019.Submitted
That’s one way to beat the pre-Christmas parking rush.
Hamilton NDP MP Matthew Green is keeping silent after photos emerged of his orange-and-white campaign vehicle parked illegally at Limeridge Mall on Dec. 21.
The van — a right-hand-drive Japanese Subaru Sambar ‘Kei’ truck modified to look like a Volkswagen microbus — was spotted by a Toronto Sun reader parked on the end-of-row hash marks at the Hamilton mall during the busy last-weekend-before-Christmas shopping rush.
The van sports numerous decals featuring Green’s name, social media handles and website URLs, and frequently serves as a setting for live social media broadcasts, or selfies with colleagues and supporters.
A van belonging to Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green parked illegally at Limeridge Mall in Hamilton, Ont. on Dec. 21 2019 Submitted
John Hlohinec, who came across the dodgy parking job, told the Sun it rubbed him the wrong way see the attempt to circumvent the holiday crowds vying for scarce parking spots.
Hlohinec says he waited more than 30 minutes for Green to return.
Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green gives federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh a ride in his distinctive Subaru ‘Kei’ van in Hamilton, Ont. on Sept. 9, 2019. Twitter/@MatthewGreenNDP
“I went over to him and said, ‘Good morning, Mr. Green. Why are you parking in a no parking zone?’”
Green, he claims, instantly went on the defensive — asking if he was a retired police officer or security guard, and said if he wasn’t prepared to ask him questions regarding his constituency, he should “stop picking on him.”
“He said he was in a hurry and didn’t have time to talk to me,” Hlohinec added.
Green then entered the van and — “without scraping the frost-covered windows,” Hlohinec said — drove away.
Both Hlohinec and his son-in-law Mike Ault reached out to Green through his constituency office and via social media seeking an explanation but got no reply.
The Sun’s inquiries to Green on Thursday likewise went unanswered.
Green served on Hamilton city council from 2014 to 2018, choosing not to seek re-election and making a successful bid to replace retiring MP and former federal NDP deputy leader David Christopherson.
Green was no stranger to headlines during his term on council.
In 2016, he was involved in a high-profile racial profiling complaint against a Hamilton police officer in which he claimed he was carded while waiting for a bus.
For those of you who think police carding is over. I was just arbitrarily stopped/questioned by @HamiltonPolice as a City Clr in my own city
— Matthew Green (@MatthewGreenNDP) April 26, 2016
Accounts of the 2018 Police Services Act tribunal published in the Hamilton Spectator described Green as feeling “criminalized” and “psychologically detained” by the officer’s actions, who testified he was only checking on Green’s well-being after spotting him “standing in a puddle” and wearing clothes far too light for the cold, blustery day.
The tribunal dismissed the complaint, saying in the ruling that Green’s account of the interaction was “beyond belief” and that no evidence was presented suggesting he was “stopped and questioned because of his race.”
bpassifiume@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @bryanpassifiume

http://thespec.com/opinion-story/8572933-coun-green-s-case-undone-by-his-own-words
http://documentcloud.org/documents/4448106-Decision-Pfeifer-26-APR-2018-2.html
http://torontosun.com/news/local-news/hamilton-ndp-mp-confronted-over-illegal-parking-job

 

[Jinentonix]

In 2016, he was involved in a high-profile racial profiling complaint against a Hamilton police officer in which he claimed he was carded while waiting for a bus.

That exact same thing happened to me years ago. I was at a bus stop when it started to rain. The building by the bus stop had recessed windows so I stepped in there to stay dry. A cruiser rolled up, called me over and the cop asked me why I was trying to hide from him. At which point I pointed out it was raining and the fact that HE was still inside his nice dry car while making me stand in the rain I was trying to avoid, to ask me stupid questions.

 

[spaminator]

Hamilton MP drove while suspended: court records
Bryan Passifiume
Published:
January 23, 2020
Updated:
January 23, 2020 5:38 PM EST
Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green gives federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh a ride in his distinctive Subaru 'Kei' van in Hamilton, Ont. on Sept. 9 2019.Twitter/@MatthewGreenNDP
Poor parking wasn’t the only vehicular sin committed by a Hamilton member of parliament.
In the wake of reports published earlier this month by the Toronto Sun showing Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green beating the pre-Christmas crunch at Lime Ridge Mall by parking his campaign van in a no-parking zone, court records show the rookie NDP backbencher has repeated convictions for driving while suspended — justice delivered in absentia as Green never showed up for any of his appearances.
On Oct. 4 2012, Green’s driver’s licence was suspended for non-payment of fines when he was was pulled over by police in downtown Hamilton and handed a summons ordering him to appear in court Nov. 21.
Green was a no-show for his trial date, court records show, and his case was put off to March 6 2013 — an appearance he likewise never attended.
His case was adjourned again until Aug. 26, which — after failing to appear for a third time — was convicted in absentia and handed a $1,000 fine along with an additional six month suspension.
Story continues below
A little over a month after his case was remanded for the second time, Green was pulled over by Haldimand County OPP in Caledonia, 20 km. southwest of Hamilton, and again charged with driving while suspended.
Hamilton NDP MP confronted over illegal parking job
Summoned but again failing to appear for his July 26 2013 court appearance, he was convicted in absentia and handed a second $1,000 fine and further suspensions.
When contacted by the Sun, Green admitted receiving two speeding tickets — one in 2011 and another in 2013 — and neglected to pay the fine by the deadline.
“On both occasions I was unaware that my license was suspended until I was informed during a traffic stop,” he said in a email.
“As soon as I was made aware of these situations, I paid the fines and my license was reinstated after the appropriate time.”
A van belonging to Hamilton Centre MP Matthew Green parked illegally at Limeridge Mall in Hamilton on Dec. 21, 2019. Submitted
Elected to Hamilton City Council in 2014, Green chose not to seek re-election to mount a successful bid to replace long-time Hamilton Centre MP and former federal NDP deputy leader David Christopherson, who retired in 2018 from a celebrated three-decade career in municipal, provincial and federal politics.
Green came under fire earlier this year after Toronto Sun reader John Hlohinec spotted his signature orange-and-white ‘kei van’ — emblazoned with Green’s name, social media handles and NDP party logos — parked in a no-parking zone at Hamilton’s Lime Ridge Mall on Dec. 21.
Green allegedly went on the defensive when confronted, asking if Hlohinec was a retired police officer and demanding he ‘stop picking on him.’
bpassifiume@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @bryanpassifiume
http://torontosun.com/news/local-news/hamilton-mp-drove-while-suspended-court-records