Calgary councillor being investigated by police says driver nearly hit his dog

Calgary Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra, whose role in an alleged road rage incident is being investigated by police, said Tuesday he was involved in an incident with a vehicle but claims he was defending himself from assault. 

Police said the incident occurred April 2 in Calgary, but because Carra is a city councillor, the matter has been passed along to the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) to investigate.

On Tuesday, the Ward 9 councillor said in a statement on Twitter that on April 2 a driver ran through a stop sign while he was in the crosswalk and nearly hit his dog, which he had to pull out from under the car. 

"They were so close, I was able to tap the bumper with my foot as they sped by," Carra wrote. 

"The driver then stopped, reversed back to me, and the two occupants left their vehicle and began verbally accosting me."

"The driver admitted that he did not see me but became increasingly verbally irate, and as I stood my ground, escalated to physically assaulting me. I defended myself from the assault as best I could in the moment." 

Calgary police confirmed Monday it responded to reports of a road rage incident and that a vehicle had been damaged in Calgary's Bridgeland neighbourhood. 

CBC News confirmed with CPS that the instance involved the driver of a vehicle and a pedestrian, and that the pedestrian was Carra. 

Landis Reichle, an Edmonton Police Service communications advisor, confirmed the service had received a referral to investigate an incident involving two members of the public, one of whom is an elected official in Calgary.

In his statement, Carra said he was notified an investigation is underway but said he learned through news media that EPS had been asked to investigate. 

'Wait and see'

Carra is a council-appointed member of the Calgary Police Commission, which oversees the city police force.

In a statement to CBC News, the commission said Carra has voluntarily stepped back from his role to address a personal matter.  

"His position is currently being held for him, but he will not be participating in any meetings or able to access any confidential commission information until the matter is resolved." 

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she will "wait and see" if she needs to take action and appoint a new person to the police commission. 

"Should it be noted by commission or by council that we need to replace the position, we will certainly do that. That's not up to me to decide independently."

She said because it is a relatively new investigation, she does not have all the details but says there will be more discussion over the coming days.