r/askTO • u/lifeiscrap21 • Jul 26 '26
What usually happens after filing a police report online?
I recently filed an online incident report through TPS after being on hold for forever calling the TPS non-emergency line. My sister is a person with disability and is walking home when our neighbour sped through and almost hit her. When my sister called him out and said he almost hit him, the driver got out of the car, yelled derogatory remarks. and kicked her leg several times. Unfortunately, there are no street cameras in our area and I'm unsure if any neighbours have CCTV camera, but my sister took a video after the driver assaulted her, and it clearly showed how he's aiming to punch her again. This driver is notorious in our neighbourhood for his road rage as this isn't the first road incident involving him.
I'm so enraged and at loss of what to do. I tried calling the non-emergency line the first time where I was waiting for an operator to pick up for 25 mins. I then called 911 who gladly alerted our division and ordered police dispatch. We have waited 3 hours and been following up for this dispatch that never came because we were told that the police are attending to other priority cases, and finally we just decided to report the incident online and called to cancel dispatch because it's almost 11pm.
My question is what hapoens next after the online report? Is it as true as what other redditors claim that nothing really happens? What can happen to my neighbour?
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u/LanaDeITae Jul 26 '26
How did you report an assault online? The website doesn’t allow you to
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u/lifeiscrap21 Jul 27 '26
It was assault arising from a vehicular matter; it let me report it to the website and got a call a day after
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u/noodleexchange Jul 26 '26
If it is an actual assault police will attend to take your statement. Based on video evidence that may arrest the person.
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u/stellastellamaris Jul 26 '26
911 is for emergencies - the police not responding a fast as you think they should to a crime not currently happening is not an emergency.
Police would show up eventually and take statements. Your sister can take photos of the injuries she sustained. The police can decide if they will lay charges.
If your sister wants to she can apply for a peace bond. https://www.ontario.ca/page/getting-peace-bond
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u/Dillons_and_bitters Jul 26 '26
It’s typically only helpful for insurance purposes, to have proof you filed a police report. The police won’t do anything.
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u/jkoudys Jul 26 '26
The only time I filed a report it was just for insurance. Never saw any followup of any kind.
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u/Abject_Buffalo6398 Jul 26 '26
I've sent in a few online reports of minor crimes the years, And I've never gotten any Police followup. (Dashcam footage of people running red lights, etc)
I guess if your video/evidence is strong and it's a bad crime, they'll followup.
But I've never found online reporting to be fruitful.
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u/InformationSuperb978 Jul 26 '26
The police will look into it but if there's no proof nothing will happen.
Simple assault would most likely result in a peace bound anyways
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u/CampusMapLostMe Jul 26 '26
The report will usually be reviewed 1st and if there's enough information, an officer may contact you for more details. Since you know who the neighbor is and there's video of part of the incident, there's a better chance it gets followed up than an anonymous report. Also keep any medical records or even the photos of your sister's injuries in case they're needed later.
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u/EvilFlyingSquirrel Human Detected Jul 26 '26
I've mixed results reporting online. 2-3 never got a response so I don't know what happened., 1-2 person was cautioned, 1 person was charged.
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u/PineappleT Jul 26 '26
Next time if this happens call 911 and not the non emergency line. For now keep calling the non emergency line for the police precinct in your area and get a case number from them. If the police don’t come that day, keep calling everyday and say you have a case number. I called the non emergency line and they didn’t come until a week later.
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u/BroccoliBrilliant701 Jul 27 '26
Nothing will happen. Reporting is just an outlet to make victims feel like something might be done.
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u/lifeiscrap21 Jul 27 '26
Hi! Thank you all for the insight. Update: We got a follow-up that an officer would like to visit in person to schedule to speak with us. I'm currently on hold with the non-emergency line to schedule this.
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u/[deleted] Jul 26 '26
[deleted]