From the Sept. 1 Toronto Star online:::

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Former Ontario attorney general Michael Bryant is being questioned by police this morning after a cyclist was struck and killed last night.

Bryant was taken into custody following the incident and police are trying to determine whether to charge him, said Sgt. Tim Burrows. Police did say alcohol was not involved.

Burrows would not confirm witness reports the cyclist jumped on the car after a collision around 9:45 p.m. on Bloor St., just west of St. Thomas St., and began fighting with the driver of a black Saab.

Witnesses said the cyclist hung onto the driver's side of the car, which had its convertible top down, while the driver allegedly yelled at him to get off.

The vehicle was driving on the wrong side of the road and drove up on to a curb trying to knock the cyclist off for about 100 metres, witnesses said.

"Lots of people were watching and they couldn't believe what was happening," said Ryan Brazeau, a worker with a crew laying sewer pipes on Bloor.

The vehicle veered onto the eastbound lanes and mounted the curb, brushing against trees and poles. The victim was apparently run over by the rear wheels of the vehicle, witnesses said.

He was taken to St. Michael's Hospital with serious head injuries and died around midnight.

Burrows said a large portion of the incident was captured on surveillance video and that investigators are working to fill in the gaps.

"What we do know at this point in time is there was an altercation that occurred last night on Bloor St. We're appealing for any witnesses and we're going to open up a timeline on this case," Burrows said.

"Anybody who was on Bloor St. last night between twenty after nine and ten to ten, anywhere between Church St. and Avenue Rd. that saw, heard, or believed that something was out of the ordinary, any little piece of information is going to help fill in some of the gaps we have in the investigation."

Bryant has reportedly been in contact with a lawyer, and if he is charged, will appear in Old City Hall this morning.

The victim's name has not been released, pending notification of next of kin. Burrows said the man lives at a downtown address.

Police are also reportedly questioning a female passenger who was in the convertible at the time.

Homicide detectives assisted Traffic Services with the investigation, which closed both lanes of Bloor St. W. between Bay and Avenue for most of the night.

Bryant was first elected MPP for St. Paul's in 1999 and won re-election in 2003 and 2007. He was awarded Now Magazine's Best Toronto MPP for 2008.

Residents on a small street in the St. Paul's riding said they were shocked to hear about the alleged incident.

"I just saw the headline," one man said, who asked not to be named.

"He's a busy guy, we don't see him around very much."

When a Star reporter visited Bryant's two-storey Victorian home on Foxbar Rd., at the intersection of St. Clair W. and Avenue Rd., a woman closed the curtains. She could then be seen in the window talking on the phone while two children played.

Bryant was Ontario's youngest-ever attorney general, serving throughout the McGuinty government's first four-year term.

Bryant legalized paralegals, fixed election dates, banned pit bulls, overhauled the human rights system, re-created the Law Reform Commission, re-established civilian oversight of police and depoliticized Justice of the Peace appointments.

Bryant, who also served as Aboriginal Affairs Minister, stepped down as Ontario's economic development minister in May to become president and CEO of the new Invest Toronto corporation chaired by Mayor David Miller.

In a statement issued this morning, Miller expressed "sincere condolences to the family and friends of the cyclist who died last night following an incident in the Yorkville area."

But citing the ongoing police investigation, he declined to comment further.

With files from Jesse McLean

Seems incredible that an Attorney General would willfully kill someone.

Was the Attorney General for the city of Toronto or the county or province?

Bryant had ben Attorney General of Ontario.

boggles the mind, my friends knew the victim....

"sources say he faces possible charges of criminal negligence causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death"

Discussion on local forum.

i'm not sure how to feel about this. on one hand if i'm holding onto a car and it starts moving, I would let go. Also if i'm driving a car, specially a convertible and someone grabs onto it i might take it like a threat and i'd try to flee. This story needs more information.

In the absence of any damage to the driver or a witness who says that the cyclist was brandishing a weapon, I think you'd have a hard time making the "threat" and "trying to flee' arguments, after driving up onto a curb and trying to scrape the guy off on trees (and who knows, endangering pedestrians too?).

We still need more information on this.

By the time the cyclist realized the guy was not going to stop, they were probably going too fast for him to feel he could let go safely.

That sums up how I feel as well.

Even in cases of self defense, there is a limit to what you can do to someone before it becomes assault.

driver trained in a boxing gym... could have easily popped the biker off without resorting to killing him

I've heard the news early this morning, almost made me sick! I am glad to hear that charges have been laid. It seems that this war ,of bike vs car is just getting more intense for the past few months. Something has to change around here we need some strict laws to protect the cyclists.This looks like a vehicular manslaughter to me.

I sure hope he goes to jail.

Clearly, more information is needed. Doesn't seem like a good idea to jump to a conclusion about what really happened. People see things differently, and eyewitness accounts of things are often woefully flawed. A video of a portion of the incident from some security camera doesn't tell us what happened entirely, either.

It's tough to tell what really happened until all the available facts come out. A few years back, I won a jury trial on a home invasion case with an eyewitness (homeowner) who was inside watching what was happening and a videotape (allegely showing my client hiding the burglary tools).

My vote is that we wait and see what comes of this mess.

Video here of car lunging at the cyclist. Skip ahead to 1:06 through 1:20.

The media firm that Bryant hired is working like mad to sway public opinion. Bryant's misdeeds and personal problems with substances and anger is being vigorously swept under the rug.

Bryant is clearly at fault - the bike was stopped and impaled.