Darcy Allan Sheppard – A life’s last moments

Mess Media, December 7, 2009

Darcy Allan Sheppard

On August 31, 2009, former attorney general for Ontario, Michael Bryant, killed cyclist Darcy Allan Sheppard in one of the most violent and horrific cases of road rage in Toronto’s history.

Neither Michael Bryant nor his wife, entertainment lawyer Susan Abramovitch, gave statements to police regarding the circumstances that led to Darcy Allan Sheppard’s death. They will have many months to tailor their testimonies to fit the known evidence and weave it seamlessly into a vigorous defense mounted by one of the most elite criminal lawyers in the country.

Bryant’s victim, Darcy Allan Sheppard, who was known as Al to his friends, will not have a voice at the trial. He will not have an opportunity to challenge Michael Bryant’s carefully scripted and rehearsed testimony. He will not have a chance to correct Bryant’s devoted wife and an experienced lawyer when she unconditionally supports her husband of twelve years on the witness stand.

Al’s voice needs to be heard. It’s important that people have an opportunity to understand his life’s last moments. Al could have been any one of us. He just happened to be the cyclist who crossed paths with a driver on the verge of a road rage meltdown.

I have attempted to rebuild those last moments of Al’s life from his point of view. All of the events are based on the factual evidence contained in security camera video, witness statements and news reports. Al’s point of view is also primarily based on the factual evidence as well as my own experiences as a bike messenger and cyclist.

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Apparently (Al Sheppard) – The lyrics

The lyrics to Uncle Dropsi’s and Sunny D’s tribute to Darcy Allan Sheppard are up at the New York City Messenger blog Smashenger

Intro (edited version for youtube etc): We and him used to get along / cause x-amount of bangarong (translation: cause a whole heap of crazy funtimes)

You’se a plaintiff with a tainted past, you ain’t entitled to trial
No need to hear your side, whether you’re dead or alive
Throw enough dough at a PR firm and the defendant won’t see trial
Still jog the beach and smile, maintain a bling lifestyle

Dropsi: Hey kids! Some advice for all y’all / get arrested when you’re someone you get 2 phonecalls
Personalities galore show examples, go ahead ask Winona Ryder, or Gordon Campbell
But they didn’t leave my pal to die in the street / hiding in the Hyatt lobby making alibis meet
They didn’t kill somebody breaking laws that they helped write, but at least one of them knows what a pitbull looks like

What a joke, eh? Listen up clear all about your justice system how it works two tier
Type for trailer park trash who love to drink beer ain’t the same as the one for the cats who own Lears
One for diplomats who drop half a mil a year between drugs and rehab clinics far and near
One for royalty and folks too rich to know fear and one for [niggaz] who can’t even afford to chuck spears
See what I’m getting at? It’s all about cash / with enough of it the laws you infract get bypassed
Wanna break some? Put aside about two mil/ that should cover for your legal fees and PR bill

Ride of Silence and Vigil for Darcy Allan Sheppard

Mess Media, August 26, 2010

Toronto cyclists will be holding a ride of silence for slain cyclist Darcy Allan Sheppard at 1pm on Sunday August 29, 2010. The ride starts at Bloor and Avenue Rd.

The ride will be followed by a candlelight vigil later that evening around 7:30pm at Bay and Bloor.

The ride and vigil will commemorate the first anniversary of Sheppard’s death on August 31, 2009.

Sheppard’s courier friends Uncle Dropsi and Sunny D have release a song and video to remember him.

The 33-year old Sheppard was killed after an attack by former Ontario attorney general Michael Bryant.

Witnesses and video evidence showed that Bryant deliberately rammed his car into Sheppard knocking him to the ground. Witnesses also described Bryant as intentionally speeding the wrong way down Bloor Street, mounting the curb and crashing Sheppard into a fire hydrant and mailbox before fleeing.

Despite video evidence and witness statements, special prosecutor Richard Peck dropped all charges against his fellow British Columbia bred lawyer. Critics of his decision pointed to Peck’s propensity to drop charges in high profile cases involving government and police officials.