Media Centre

The Toronto Police Service is the fourth largest municipal police service in North America. The TPS Corporate Communications Unit is responsible for media relations and public information and fields thousands of media inquiries annually.

Media Requests for Information and Interviews

Our team values media relationships and is committed to providing accurate, timely information about public safety, police operations and corporate initiatives, 365 days a year.  

Our Media Relations Officers (MROs), sworn police officers, proactively publish information and respond to media inquiries from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m.

How to Reach Us:

• Email:  [email protected]
• Telephone:  416-808-7100

An MRO or other member of the Corporate Communications team will acknowledge your email within two hours. We may request further time or information to assist us in preparing a response, gathering information or connecting media with the appropriate subject-matter-expert or spokesperson.

Triage & Emerging Issues

Please note that priority is given to matters regarding immediate or emerging public safety issues and active police incidents or announcements. Local Toronto media will be prioritized in times of emerging public issues in the city. For up-to-the-minute information on emerging issues, please follow the @TPSOperations Twitter account for ongoing updates.

Please note that we are unable to reply to media requests on our social media platforms due to volume.

Data and Research Requests

The TPS Public Safety Data Portal has a vast range of open data and data analytics, calls for service data, budget information, maps, resources and reports, along with corporate information.

If the data you seek is not available here, please contact Corporate Communications. You may be asked to submit a Freedom of Information request depending on the scope of the information requested and any privacy, legal or commercial implications.

Toronto Police Disciplinary Tribunal

Information about police disciplinary hearings can be found here.

Corporate Communications releases the Disciplinary Tribunal schedule to media weekly. Notice of Hearings (NOHs) will be provided once the member makes a first appearance at the Tribunal.

Documentary and Feature Requests

TPS receives many documentary and feature requests. Please send [email protected] a full outline of your request, including title, synopsis, projected dates, and requirements.

All requests will be reviewed but not all can be accommodated due to Service operational priorities and officer availability.

Student Requests

Students should outline the full scope of their request and include a deadline. Please be precise about the context of the request and what specific information you are seeking.

Please allow up to 10 business days for a response, and check our website and Public Safety Data Portal for information first.

Restricted Information

We aim to be as transparent as possible when providing information to the media and public.

Some information may not be immediately available, or provided at all, for reasons including: the safety of our police officers and special constables, legislative restrictions (i.e. Police Services Act, Youth Criminal Justice Act), protecting the privacy of victims, and maintaining the integrity of investigations.

Identity:

• Identities and images of suspects under the age of 18 will not be provided pursuant to the Youth Criminal Justice Act, unless judicial authorization is granted to the Service
• Names of suspects and victims involved in Intimate Partner Violence or Domestic incidents will not be provided to protect the victim and other family members, including children
• Information that could lead to the identity of victims (except in Homicide investigations.) The identity of homicide victims will be released when the next of kin have been notified and when the Homicide Unit confirms that it will not jeopardize the investigation
• Identities of people in photos or videos that have not been released by the Toronto Police Service
• Victims of suicide
• Names of people charged with provincial offences, unless they have also been charged with a criminal offence in the same incident

Other:

• Details of Special Investigations Unit (SIU) investigations
• The criminal past of defendants
• Exact addresses of incidents unless deemed necessary for immediate public safety concerns
• Images of suspects and those charged, unless there is an investigative reason
• Details of non-suspicious or non-criminal incidents, including suicides
• Status of court cases. The media must contact the relevant court where the case was heard
• Operational and investigative policies, procedures and tactics, except routine techniques and procedures
• Anything that could compromise the integrity of an investigation

Media Accreditation and Pre-Registration for News Conferences

Most TPS news conferences will be held in the TPS Media Gallery, located at TPS Headquarters (HQ). Access to Media Gallery events and news conferences is for accredited media representatives only.

As HQ is an operational building, all members of the public and media entering Headquarters are required to go through security screening. If one does not consent to this screening, entry will be denied.

Pre-registration may be required and identification may be requested upon entry to the Media Gallery. The Service may restrict entry at any time.

Most events are live-streamed on the Service’s YouTube account and may be viewed during or after the event. The Service will publish news releases, photographs as appropriate after the event or upon request.

Feature Stories