Coun. Jim Karygiannis harassed, intimidated residents: Watchdog
Conduct in confrontations over Uber pickup and parking "shocking," integrity commissioner says.

MetroNews.ca
June 2, 2016

Councillor Jim Karygiannis’ targeted intimidation of local residents was “shocking” conduct that broke council’s rules, a city watchdog has found.

But after the two separate incidents, one that involved an Uber driver, the integrity commissioner is only advising council to reprimand the rookie councillor in one of the cases at council next week. In the other case, no punishment was recommended.

The complaints received by integrity commissioner Valerie Jepson involved residents of Karygiannis’ Ward 39 (Scarborough-Agincourt) who accused the councillor of bullying and intimidation. Both had tweeted about their interactions.

The first complainant, Monica Wahba, said when she was driving home on May 3 last year, unknowingly behind Karygiannis’ car, the councillor stopped in front of her home and got out to argue that parking on the apron of her driveway was not allowed.

After taking a picture of the car, Karygiannis left.

Wahba, later tweeted about the incident, including pictures of Karygiannis, cigar in hand.

A week later, Karygiannis returned and knocked on the door and told the family the car had to be moved. Jepson wrote that Karygiannis spoke “in a normal voice and was polite.”

But a few days later, Karygiannis and the complainant’s father met unexpectedly in a shisha bar “which both men attended regularly.” Karygiannis again raised the parking issue “abruptly” and “in a loud voice.”

Karygiannis threatened to have the family ticketed.

On at least one other occasion, Karygiannis came to the house at night to take pictures of the parked cars, Jepson found. The family later complained to police saying they were “scared of the councillor.”

While Jepson wrote the councillor was correct about the parking prohibition she said “Councillor Karygiannis’ repeated efforts to inform the complainant and her family about the bylaw were intimidating and harassing.”

“The councillor’s conduct is shocking and had the cumulative effect of irreparably harming the complainant’s and her family’s trust and confidence in the councillor,” Jepson wrote.

“More importantly, the councillor’s actions led to a reasonable belief that the separation between elected officials and enforcement had been blurred and accordingly damaged the trust and confidence that the complainant and her family had in the institution of the City of Toronto.”

Karygiannis argued he had done nothing wrong and was carrying out the duties expected of him as a councillor, but told Jepson’s office he apologized and could “understand how the complainant and her father may have perceived my actions differently and might have felt intimidated.”

Wahba told Jepson that apology wasn’t good enough.

But Jepson found Karygiannis should simply be reprimanded by council with no other penalty.

“It is my view that requesting or coercing an additional apology from the councillor would not be productive at this stage,” she wrote.

The second incident took place in July 2015 when Karygiannis confronted an Uber driver that Lauren Reyes-Grange called to her parent’s home.

According to the integrity commissioner’s report, the driver first approached a group of people congregated outside another home on the street and asked if any of them had called for the car. Among the group was Karygiannis.

“In a loud voice, the councillor told the driver that by driving the Uber vehicle, he was breaking Ontario laws and municipal rules and regulations,” the report says. While there was some “dispute” about whether Karygiannis leaned inside the driver’s car, Jepson found Karygiannis “stood in close enough proximity to the driver that it contributed to the driver’s feelings of apprehension.”

The complainant’s father asked Karygiannis to leave his property. Karygiannis retreated to the sidewalk, where he took a picture of the Uber driver’s car, got in his own car and left.

Karygiannis, who has been vocally opposed to Uber at council, told the integrity commissioner’s office that he was justified in intervening. Jepson found Karygiannis acted in an “inappropriate, aggressive and intimidating manner” but that it happened early in his term as he was “learning about the role of a municipal councillor.”

“The councillor asserted that because he had not been able to cross examine the witnesses, he was not able to adequately respond to the allegations,” Jepson wrote. She disagreed, saying the councillor had enough information to respond.

“He has indicated that he plans to adjust his conduct in the future,” Jepson wrote, arguing for leniency in the second case.

No punishment was recommended.

Karygiannis, a former Liberal MP who was elected to council less than two years ago, has previously found himself at the displeasure of his council colleagues.

In March last year, Karygiannis was reprimanded by Tory for berating deputants who had come to city hall to speak to the ongoing Uber debate.

“This is the new city hall, not the old one,” Tory said then.