Pubdate: Sat, 25 May 2013
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2013 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Wendy Gillis

DOUG FORD REPEATEDLY DENIES FRESH DRUG-RELATED ALLEGATIONS IN PUBLISHED REPORT

Doug Ford said there is no truth to newly published allegations that 
he was involved in selling hashish in the 1980s.

As fresh allegations involving the Ford family and drugs emerged 
Saturday, Councillor Doug Ford kicked into defence mode, calling 
reports that he was once an accomplished hashish dealer "disgusting" 
and an "outright lie" and accusing the media of attempting to "go 
after our family's character."

"Why don't we talk about the great things the Ford family has done 
for Etobicoke? And throughout the city?" asked Ford in an interview 
with Global News Saturday, listing his family's charitable donations 
benefitting Etobicoke General Hospital and various sports teams.

Ford appeared on numerous radio and TV shows Saturday to rebut a 
front page Globe and Mail article claiming he was a successful hash 
dealer for several years in Etobicoke during the 1980s.

Using 10 anonymous sources, the newspaper published a story Saturday 
outlining the Ford family's alleged history with drugs. These sources 
include two former suppliers, three street-level drug dealers and a 
number of casual users, according to the article.

Sources in the article also named David Price, the mayor's former 
high school football coach-turned official adviser, as a member of 
Doug Ford's circle at the time.

The Star has not verified the allegations. A request for comment from 
Price was not returned Saturday.

In early morning interview with Citytv, Ford called the media "bunch 
of sick sleazeballs that want to destroy families that give back to 
their communities." Throughout the day he railed off a list of 
personal and family accomplishments, including the involvement of 
himself and Doug Ford Sr. in the Rexdale Rotary Club.

"We have a slogan in Rotary, 'Service above Self,' and that 
represents the Fords," he said in an interview with Global News.

While admitting to recreational use of marijuana in high school - 
"like everyone else," he told Global News - he claimed he hates drugs 
and does not even take Aspirin.

Ford also took personal aim at Globe and Mail editor John Stackhouse 
for publishing the story. In a statement to the Star Saturday, 
Stackhouse said the Fords were "again trying to distract attention 
from serious questions."

"We spent 18 months of painstaking reporting to shed light on 
important aspects of the Ford family's past, and we stand by that 
reporting. For the sake of Toronto, Doug Ford should speak to the 
specifics of our story," Stackhouse said.

In an editor's letter about the story published Saturday, Stackhouse 
said the paper decided to publish the investigation this week because 
of the intense public interest around the Ford family and alleged 
substance abuse.

Globe reporters approached Rob and Doug Ford several times to speak 
to the allegations, but "Doug Ford rebuffed our entreaties, and 
aggressively threatened legal action," Stackhouse wrote in the letter.

Asked by CP24's Stephen LeDrew why the Ford's weren't suing for 
libel, Ford said he did not want to go up against companies with 
"billions of dollars."

"Can I go up, little David and Goliath, I'm fighting for the little 
guy, and I'm going to try and sue a multibillion dollar organization 
that.... drags it out for five years?" Ford said.

Reaction from city councillors reached by the Star Saturday was mixed.

Councillor Josh Matlow called the new scandal another part of the 
"sideshow" that distract from what matters.

"All these controversies combined have created a very surreal 
environment at city hall," he said.

Noting that he didn't know Doug Ford until 1994, Deputy Mayor Doug 
Holyday said he has never seen anything since that time that "would 
indicate that kind of background."

Though he said he questions the veracity of the allegations, 
Councillor Frank Di Giorgio said "there was a lot of that" happening 
in high schools in the 1980s.

"It's interesting because I think Councillor Ford has some pretty 
good business sense, and I guess it wouldn't surprise me if he were 
involved in some kind of business venture back then," he said.

Speaking to LeDrew, Ford went on to say that he and Mayor Rob Ford 
would be willing to step down and have an early election and prove 
they still have support from Toronto citizens.

The article comes a day after Rob Ford ended a weeklong silence by 
making a statement to media about a video in which he appears to 
smoke crack cocaine. "I do not use crack cocaine, nor am I an addict 
of crack cocaine," Rob Ford said.

Two Toronto Star reporters and an editor at Gawker have watched the 
video, which was being shopped around by some Toronto drug dealers 
for six figures. Ford said throughout the day that his brother waited 
over a week to address the allegations because he was getting 
conflicting advice: Legal experts were telling Ford to stay quiet, 
while political advisers were telling the mayor to talk.

The Globe's article also claims Ford brother Randy was once charged 
in relation to a drug-related kidnapping and that their sister, Kathy 
Ford, has been the victim of drug-related gun violence in the past.

The Star does not know the outcome of Randy Ford's charge.

There is nothing on the public record the Globe has accessed that 
shows Doug Ford has ever been charged for illegal drug possession or 
trafficking, according to the article.

Several of the sources interviewed by the Globe said they saw the 
mayor around his brother as he was allegedly doing business but that 
he did not appear to be involved in any significant way.

- - With files from Tim Alamenciak and Andrew Nguyen
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom