Director's Report Details

The Special Investigations Unit is a civilian law enforcement agency that investigates incidents involving an official where there has been death, serious injury, the discharge of a firearm at a person or an allegation of sexual assault. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, 2019 (SIU Act), officials are defined as police officers, special constables of the Niagara Parks Commission and peace officers under the Legislative Assembly Act. The SIU’s jurisdiction covers more than 50 municipal, regional and provincial police services across Ontario.

Under the SIU Act, the Director of the SIU must determine based on the evidence gathered in an investigation whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that a criminal offence was committed. If such grounds exist, the Director has the authority to lay a criminal charge against the official. Alternatively, in cases where no reasonable grounds exist, the Director cannot lay charges. Where no charges are laid, a report of the investigation is prepared and released publicly, except in the case of reports dealing with allegations of sexual assault, in which case the SIU Director may consult with the affected person and exercise a discretion to not publicly release the report having regard to the affected person’s privacy interests.

Special Investigations Unit Act, 2019

Pursuant to section 34, certain information may not be included in this report. This information may include, but is not limited to, the following: 

Pursuant to section 15 of the SIU Act, the SIU may investigate the conduct of officials, be they police officers, special constables of the Niagara Parks Commission or peace officers under the Legislative Assembly Act, that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault or the discharge of a firearm at a person.

A person sustains a “serious injury” for purposes of the SIU’s jurisdiction if they: sustain an injury as a result of which they are admitted to hospital; suffer a fracture to the skull, or to a limb, rib or vertebra; suffer burns to a significant proportion of their body; lose any portion of their body; or, as a result of an injury, experience a loss of vision or hearing.

In addition, a “serious injury” means any other injury sustained by a person that is likely to interfere with the person’s health or comfort and is not transient or trifling in nature.

This report relates to the SIU’s investigation into the serious injuries of a 36-year-old man (the “Complainant”).

Notification of the SIU

On June 26, 2022, at 11:34 p.m., the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) contacted the SIU with the following information.

Earlier that day, at 10:00 p.m., two OPP police vehicles were patrolling on Lisgar Avenue, Tillsonburg, when one of them was involved in a motor vehicle collision. One of the police vehicles was travelling west, and the other police vehicle east, when a motorcycle travelled in front of the eastbound vehicle (operated by Witness Official (WO) #1). The motorcyclist, the Complainant, looked over his shoulder and then crossed over the centre line of the roadway, colliding with the westbound police vehicle (operated by the Subject Official (SO)). The Complainant was taken to the Tillsonburg District Memorial Hospital by the Norfolk County Paramedic Service. He was diagnosed with a fractured hip and ankle.

The Team

Date and time team dispatched: 06/27/2022 at 12:46 a.m.

Date and time SIU arrived on scene: 06/27/2022 at 2:26 a.m.

Number of SIU Investigators assigned: 4

The Scene

On June 27, 2022, at 2:26 a.m., two SIU FIs arrived at Lisgar Avenue and Van Norman Drive, Tillsonburg. The scene was properly secured and guarded by police officers.

Lisgar Avenue travelled predominately in an east and west direction. The roadway had two driving lanes, and the pavement was in good condition. Streetlighting was present in the area.

Westbound on Lisgar Avenue, the roadway curved to the left near the intersection at Van Norman Drive to travel in a southwest direction.

Approximately ten metres west of the intersection were two vehicles within the confines of a secured area.

Vehicle 1 was a 2016 Yamaha FZ-09 black motorcycle. The motorcycle was oriented in a northeast direction on its right side in the eastbound lane of Lisgar Avenue. There was heavy front-end damage to the motorcycle with the front forks snapped off.

Vehicle 2 was the vehicle operated by the SO, a 2018 Dodge Durango. Vehicle 2 was a marked police cruiser displaying OPP graphics. The vehicle was equipped with emergency lighting and a siren. The police vehicle was oriented facing east in the eastbound lane of Lisgar Avenue approximately six metres west of vehicle 1. There was heavy front-end collision damage to this vehicle.

Between the two vehicles was a debris field, which consisted of personal items such as a motorcycle helmet, riding body armour, shoes, and gloves. There was a distinct gouge mark on the roadway surface indicating an area of impact. There were also scrape marks, which travelled east from the area of impact and ended around vehicle 1.

The scene was photographed, and measurements were taken for a scene diagram.


Figure 1 – Image of vehicle collision damage


Figure 2 – Incident scene

Scene Diagram

Forensic Evidence

GPS Data from Vehicle 2:

The following is a summary of the GPS data associated with the SO’s cruiser.

At 9:59:17 p.m., June 26, 2022, the SO’s vehicle travelled east on Lisgar Avenue at 37 km/h from the T-intersection at Devonshire Road.

At 9:59:30 p.m., the SO’s vehicle was stopped facing east on Lisgar Avenue just west of Van Norman Drive (the location of the collision).

Video/Audio/Photographic Evidence [1]

Radio Transmissions

At 9:59 p.m., on June 26, 2022, the SO reported that a motorcycle had collided with his police vehicle. WO #1 advised the dispatcher he was still on Lisgar Avenue. WO #3 reported that a motorcycle had crossed the centre line, and had almost collided with his police vehicle. WO #1 reported that the rider of the motorcycle, the Complainant, looked backward as he drove.

The dispatcher asked if the SO’s police vehicle was mobile or stationary when struck, and WO #1 advised the SO was mobile. The SO was travelling eastbound, and his police vehicle was still in the eastbound lane when the Complainant drove into the eastbound lane.

At 12:12 a.m., on June 27, 2022, an officer reported that the Complainant was transferred to hospital by Ornge Ambulance Service for trauma injuries, which were non-life-threatening.

Materials Obtained from Police Service

Upon request, the SIU obtained the following materials from the OPP between June 29, 2022, and August 9, 2022:

• Motor Vehicle Collision Report;
• GPS data;
• Mechanical records- the SO’s cruisier;
• Notes- the SO;
• Notes- WO #2;
• Notes- WO #3;
• Notes- WO #1;
• Computer-assisted Dispatch data;
• Communications recordings; and
• Transcript of training – the SO.

Materials Obtained from Other Sources

The SIU obtained and reviewed the following records from the following other sources:

• Medical Records - London Health Sciences Centre.

The material events in question are clear on the evidence collected by the SIU, including interviews with the Complainant and the SO, and may briefly be summarized.

In the evening of June 26, 2022, the SO was in a marked police SUV travelling east on Lisgar Avenue just west of Van Norman Drive, Tillsonburg, when a westbound motorcycle entered into his lane and collided with the front of his vehicle. The SO, having observed the motorcyclist travelling off course, had braked and angled his vehicle attempting to avoid the impact, but to no avail.

The motorcyclist was the Complainant. The Complainant had been operating his motorcycle erratically in the moments before the collision, speeding, passing other westbound traffic in the eastbound lanes, and otherwise drifting into the eastbound lane for no apparent reason. He had just passed the intersection of Lisgar Avenue and Van Norman Drive when he crossed into the eastbound lane and struck the SO’s vehicle head-on.

The Complainant was thrown from his motorcycle in the collision and suffered serious injuries, including a fractured pelvis, right ankle and skull.

The Complainant was seriously injured in a motor vehicle collision with an OPP vehicle on June 26, 2022. The driver of the cruiser – the SO – was identified as the subject official in the ensuing SIU investigation. The investigation is now concluded. On my assessment of the evidence, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the SO committed a criminal offence in connection with the Complainant’s injuries.

There is no evidence that the SO did anything to cause or contribute to the collision with the Complainant’s motorcycle. The officer was travelling below the speed limit within his proper lane of traffic when he was suddenly confronted with a motorcycle that had entered his lane. Try as he did, the SO was unable to avoid the impact with the motorcycle, but that was in no way his fault.

For the foregoing reasons, there are no grounds to proceed with criminal charges against the SO. The file is closed.



Date: October 24, 2022


Electronically approved by

Joseph Martino
Director
Special Investigations Unit