Listen to this article
Estimated 4 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
The family of a teen struck by a driver at a Toronto intersection that used to have an automated speed enforcement (ASE) camera before Ontario passed legislation to remove it is suing the province, city and driver for millions of dollars in damages.
On March 25, Toronto police said they responded to calls for a pedestrian struck at the intersection of Humber Boulevard N. and Louvain Street. A 15-year-old boy was rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to police.
The driver, a 71-year-old man, remained at the scene.
He was arrested and charged with dangerous operation and careless driving causing bodily harm, police said in an email Thursday.
A statement of claim, dated Sept. 3, filed at the Ontario Superior Court by the teen’s family and parents, Adebola and Taiwo Adebayo, alleges their son sustained “serious disfigurement and permanent serious impairment of an important physical, mental and psychological function.”
The teen suffered a traumatic brain injury, several skull fractures, injury to a carotid artery, loss of vision in the right eye, fractures to his left femur (thigh bone) and “various lacerations, abrasions and contusions” to his body, according to the statement of claim.
The injuries have caused ongoing psychological and behavioural changes, including anxiety, depression and emotional trauma, according to the claim.
The Adebayos’ son will “continue to sustain pain and suffering, a loss of enjoyment of life and a loss of amenities,” it said, noting that he will need to undergo therapy, rehabilitation and use specialized equipment.
No comment from province, lawsuit alleges it allowed ‘dangerous situation’
The statement of claim alleges that neither the city or the province equipped the intersection of Humber Boulevard N. and Louvain Street with “protective measures,” such as a traffic signal or raised crosswalk, after the speed camera in that area was taken down.
The speed camera at the intersection operated from around April 2025 until November 2025, according to the claim. The Ford government’s Bill 56, which gained royal assent in November 2025, mandated the removal of speed cameras across the province, which Ford had called a “cash grab.”
As a result, the province “created and allowed a situation of danger to exist” at the intersection, the lawsuit alleges.
It also says the province ignored complaints about the intersection and “took no or inadequate steps to remedy the situation.”
Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation declined to provide comment, saying the matter is before the court.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government will introduce legislation to ban speed cameras, instead establishing a provincial fund to help municipalities put in place other “proactive traffic-calming initiatives.”
The intersection where the teen was struck serves as a pedestrian path to a high school in the area, St. Oscar Romero Catholic Secondary School.
Patrick Brown, one of the lawyers representing the teen and his family, told CBC News part of the claim is based on “operational negligence.”
“We are alleging that after removing cameras, they [the province] failed to replace it with other protective measures in a known hazardous area,” he said in an email Thursday.
City says ‘hearts are with the teen and his family’
The statement of claim alleges multiple requests were sent by an “area resident” to Toronto’s 311 service, asking the city to assess the safety of pedestrian paths students use to get to the school, including the one where the teen was struck.
The city “knew, or ought to have known” the crossing was hazardous to pedestrians, but it failed to “take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of pedestrians crossing the intersection,” the statement of claim said.
In an emailed statement Thursday, city spokesperson Russell Baker said “our hearts are with the teen and his family.”
“While speed cameras helped reduce speeding, the City of Toronto continues to prioritize the safety of all road users through other measures in the Vision Zero program. Some of these tools include Community and School Safety Zones, safety signage, pavement markings, pedestrian head start signals, and red-light cameras,” he said.
The family is seeking $16 million in damages.
