A man was taken into custody after making a threatening phone call to staff and elected officials in the City of Burlington on Wednesday, which resulted in police evacuating city hall.
Just after 1 p. m., Wednesday, the man called city offices and threatened harm against employees.
Police quickly responded and initiated a ‘hold and secure’ procedure – allowing normal operations within the building but locking all exterior doors.
Mayor Marianne Meed Ward mentioned that initially, she and her team thought it might be a drill.
“So, you know, we’re like, ‘oh yeah, we’re in the middle of a meeting, what a time for a drill?’ And then we very quickly realized it was not a drill. There was a very real threat.”
Following that realization, police ordered everyone to evacuate the building.
“You want to try to bring some normalcy,” Meed Ward said, “but I know we were all extremely rattled. No one’s ever dealt with that, including me.”
A few hours later, an investigation led to the arrest of a 37-year-old man from Burlington who is now facing one charge of making death threats. He is currently held in custody in Milton awaiting his bail hearing.
WATCH | Mayor of Burlington says ‘we were all extremely rattled’ by death threat:
“It was not a drill,” Burlington Mayor on the threat of violence against staff and elected officials
Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed-Ward describes how she and her staff reacted when they first heard about the violent threat made against staff and elected officials by a man on Wednesday, which led to city hall being evacuated.
Meed Ward pointed out that this incident highlights why she recently started an initiative aimed at addressing what she sees as increasing hostility towards elected officials and civil servants. The initiative is called Elect Respect; it encourages both public officials and community members to sign a pledge committing themselves to “treat elected officials and each other with respect in all spaces – public private and online”, as well as “reject harassment, abuse, and personal attacks, and speak out when I witness them.”
This campaign also includes a resolution for municipal councils and other elected bodies to adopt.
To date, almost 200 elected officials from across Canada have joined along with nearly 500 citizens. Over 40 municipalities have passed the resolution.
“People are feeling that there’s a level of incivility and danger out there that puts people who deal with the public in a position that we need to ask for that civility and respect,” Meed Ward told CBC.
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“It was not a drill,” Burlington Mayor on the threat of violence against staff and elected officials
Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed-Ward describes how she and her staff reacted when they first heard about the violent threat made against staff and elected officials by a man on Wednesday, which led to city hall being evacuated.
Meed Ward pointed out that this incident highlights why she recently started an initiative aimed at addressing what she sees as increasing hostility towards elected officials and civil servants. The initiative is called Elect Respect; it encourages both public officials and community members to sign a pledge committing themselves to “treat elected officials and each other with respect in all spaces – public private and online”, as well as “reject harassment, abuse, and personal attacks, and speak out when I witness them.”
This campaign also includes a resolution for municipal councils and other elected bodies to adopt.
To date, almost 200 elected officials from across Canada have joined along with nearly 500 citizens. Over 40 municipalities have passed the resolution.
“People are feeling that there’s a level of incivility and danger out there that puts people who deal with the public in a position that we need to ask for that civility and respect,” Meed Ward told CBC.
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