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:

• The name of, and any information identifying, a subject official, witness official, civilian witness or affected person.
• Information that may result in the identity of a person who reported that they were sexually assaulted being revealed in connection with the sexual assault.
• Information that, in the opinion of the SIU Director, could lead to a risk of serious harm to a person.
• Information that discloses investigative techniques or procedures.
• Information, the release of which is prohibited or restricted by law.
• Information in which a person’s privacy interest in not having the information published clearly outweighs the public interest in having the information published.

Freedom of Information and Protection of Personal Privacy Act

Pursuant to section 14 (i.e., law enforcement), certain information may not be included in this report. This information may include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Confidential investigative techniques and procedures used by law enforcement agencies; and
• Information that could reasonably be expected to interfere with a law enforcement matter or an investigation undertaken with a view to a law enforcement proceeding.

Pursuant to section 21 (i.e., personal privacy), protected personal information is not included in this report. This information may include, but is not limited to, the following:

• The names of persons, including civilian witnesses, and subject and witness officials;
• Location information;
• Witness statements and evidence gathered in the course of the investigation provided to the SIU in confidence; and
• Other identifiers which are likely to reveal personal information about individuals involved in the investigation.

Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004

Pursuant to this legislation, any information related to the personal health of identifiable individuals is not included.

Other proceedings, processes, and investigations

Information may also have been excluded from this report because its release could undermine the integrity of other proceedings involving the same incident, such as criminal proceedings, coroner’s inquests, other public proceedings and/or other law enforcement investigations.

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 injury of a 43-year-old man (the “Complainant”).

Notification of the SIU[1]

On April 16, 2024, at 1:53 p.m., the Hamilton Police Service (HPS) contacted the SIU with the following information.

On April 15, 2024, the Complainant called the HPS and reported he was injured by police on March 26, 2024. On that day, he was reportedly taken to Juravinski Hospital (JH) by Civilian Witness (CW) #1 and formed under the Mental Health Act (MHA) after making threats of suicide and homicide. At the hospital he became upset, and left. He later returned. Upon his return, the Complainant waited with hospital security staff, who called the police. Officer #1, assigned to the Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Team (MCRRT), responded with crisis worker, CW #2.[2] Officer #1 transported the Complainant to St. Joseph’s Hospital (SJH), where the Complainant was medicated. The Complainant did not recall what happened thereafter. CW #1 told him she was outside a room the Complainant was in with some police officers when she heard a thud from inside. Nurses ran to the room saying they were going to get sued. When the nurses entered the room, the Complainant was unconscious. On April 2, 2024, the Complainant was diagnosed with an acute, non-displaced fracture of the distal tip of the ulnar styloid process of his right wrist.

The Team

Date and time team dispatched: 2024/04/16 at 2:39 p.m.

Date and time SIU arrived on scene: 2024/04/16 at 3:06 p.m.

Number of SIU Investigators assigned: 4

Number of SIU Forensic Investigators assigned: 1

Affected Person (aka “Complainant”):

43-year-old male; interviewed; medical records obtained and reviewed

The Complainant was interviewed on April 18, 2024.

Civilian Witnesses

CW #1 Interviewed

CW #2 Interviewed

The civilian witnesses were interviewed between April 20, 2024, and May 10, 2024.

Witness Official (WO)

WO Interviewed; notes received and reviewed

The witness official was interviewed on April 26, 2024.

The Scene

The events in question began at the JH, 711 Concession Street, Hamilton, and ended at SJH, 805-50 Charlton Avenue East, Hamilton.

Video/Audio/Photographic Evidence[3]

Video Footage – JH – Emergency Entrance

The recording began on March 26, 2024, at 5:49:49 p.m. After approximately 13 seconds of run time, the Complainant walked into camera view from the right side (facing) of the emergency room entrance and stood outside the doors. After one and a half minutes, he entered the emergency room doors and was out of camera view.

Video footage – JH – Ambulance Bay

Beginning on March 26, 2024, at 6:17:49 p.m., the camera view captured the inside of the ambulance bay. At run time 27 seconds, two police officers – Officer #1 and the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2, exited the hospital and walked through the ambulance bay and into the parking lot adjacent the bay. The Complainant was not handcuffed. A woman and two security officers walked with them.

Through the ambulance bay windows, the camera captured another woman join the woman at the side of a police vehicle. Those two women stood at the passenger side of that police vehicle until Officer #1 got in its driver’s seat and CW #2 got in the front passenger seat. The two women walked away and out of the camera’s view. The police vehicle occupied by Officer #1 travelled out of the camera’s view, followed by another police vehicle [now believed to have been occupied by the WO].

Video Footage – SJH

Except for several minutes when Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2 were off camera, in the triage proper, and while the investigation believes the Complainant was being assessed by a doctor, the entire duration of the police presence at the hospital in the Complainant’s company was captured on video.

Video Footage – SJH – Emergency Room (ER) Triage

Beginning on March 26, 2024, at 6:29:04 p.m., Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2 were captured as they walked into the emergency room waiting area. The Complainant was not handcuffed. He carried his cellular telephone in his left hand. The WO took a number for the triage queue. At 6:29:38 p.m., the WO, Officer #1, and the Complainant walked through a set of doors out of the waiting area, and out of the camera’s view.[4] CW #2 followed behind.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Waiting Room

On March 26, 2024, at 6:29:37 p.m., Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant and CW #2, walked into the emergency room waiting room[5] and entered a separated room just off the main waiting room. The top half of the walls of that separated room was glass. The interior of the room was visible from the main waiting room and captured by video recordings from another camera (summarized below).

Video Footage – SJH – Interview Room

On March 26, 2024, at 6:29:44 p.m., Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2, entered a room located off the main waiting room. The Complainant held his cellular telephone in his left hand, and sat on a chair. The door remained open. The Complainant appeared relaxed. He placed his right arm on the counter behind him and crossed his left leg over his right knee. Officer #1 sat in a chair.

At 6:30:29 p.m., the Complainant got out of his chair and sat on a countertop. He held his cellular telephone in both hands. His left leg was crossed over his right leg. The Complainant, Officer #1, and CW #2 appeared to hold a conversation.

At 6:32:45 p.m., Officer #1 left the room. Conversation appeared to continue between the Complainant, the WO, and CW #2. Officer #1 re-entered the room at 6:33:55 p.m. The Complainant continued to speak with Officer #1 and the WO. The Complainant held his cellular telephone in his right hand and gestured with it while he spoke. At 6:35:20 p.m., all four left the room.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Waiting Room

At 6:35:20 p.m., CW #2 led the way out of the room summarized above into the main waiting room. Officer #1, the WO, and the Complainant followed, and all walked out of the camera’s view.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Triage

At 6:35:31 p.m., CW #2 led the way with the Complainant behind her. Officer #1 and the WO walked behind the Complainant and back into the triage area. They turned left, and out of the camera’s view.

At 7:02:34 p.m., Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2, walked back into the camera’s view from where they had exited. The Complainant placed his left forearm on Officer #1’s right shoulder as they walked. All four walked out of the camera’s view.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Waiting Room

At 7:02:47 p.m., Officer #1, the WO, the Complainant, and CW #2, entered the emergency room waiting room. The Complainant walked slowly and held onto Officer #1’s right arm. He sat in a chair in the first row of seats. Officer #1 sat beside him, on his right-hand side. The WO stood beside the Complainant holding a clear bag.[6]

At 7:03:23 p.m., CW #2 walked out of the camera’s view. The Complainant and Officer #1 appeared to be engaged in conversation. The Complainant used his right hand and arm to gesture.

At 7:07:24 p.m., CW #2 returned and handed the Complainant a cup. He held the cup in his right hand, drank from it, and continued to speak with Officer #1.

At 7:10:12 p.m., a hospital staff member gestured, in a manner that appeared to instruct the Complainant be taken somewhere. The Complainant stood, the cup still in his right hand. Officer #1 assisted the Complainant by holding his right arm and they all walked out of the camera’s view.

[There was no video between 7:10:42 p.m., and 7:25:11 p.m.. That is believed to be the time the Complainant was attended to by the doctor.]

Video Footage – SJH – ER Waiting Room

At 7:25:11 p.m., CW #2, the WO, Officer #1, and the Complainant walked back into the emergency room main waiting room. The Complainant held his cellular telephone to his right ear with his right hand, and held papers in his left hand. Officer #1 had his left hand rested on the Complainant’s back as they walked.

At 7:25:28 p.m., they walked towards the back of the waiting room.

Video Footage – SJH – Room

The Complainant walked into a room. Officer #1’s left hand still rested on the Complainant’s back. The Complainant spoke on his cellular telephone, held in his right hand, and held papers and the cup in his left. Officer #1 held the Complainant’s jacket at the back as he assisted the Complainant to sit on a chair and gave the Complainant a gentle pat on the back. The WO and CW #2 entered the room behind Officer #1 and the Complainant.

At 7:25:40 p.m., Officer #1 exited the room via a second door on the other side of the room. That door stayed closed. The door they entered by remained open.

At 7:25:47 p.m., the Complainant concluded his telephone call and placed his cellular telephone on his lap with his right hand, transferred his cup to that right hand, and drank from it while he looked at the papers he had been carrying. He sat casually, his left leg crossed over his right knee. The WO stood in the open doorway. CW #2 sat in a chair across from the Complainant and appeared to speak with him. The WO also engaged in that conversation.

At 7:33:28 p.m., the Complainant appeared to finish his drink and handed the cup to the WO. The WO left the room briefly and returned without the cup. The Complainant held his cellular telephone and papers in his right hand.

At 7:34:55 p.m., the Complainant bent his head down and appeared to rest.

At 7:37:32 p.m., the WO opened the door Officer #1 had exited through and Officer #1 re-entered the room.

At 7:39:04 p.m., the Complainant folded his papers with his right hand and placed them in his inner coat pocket.

At 7:39:11 p.m., the Complainant stood and stumbled. The WO and Officer #1 caught him and assisted him to remain standing.

At 7:39:27 p.m., Officer #1 held the Complainant’s left arm, opened the closed door, and transferred his hold on the Complainant from his left arm to his right. Everyone left the room and that camera’s view.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Entrance

At 7:39:40 p.m., the Complainant, Officer #1, the WO, and CW #2 walked towards the end of the hallway. Officer #1 held the Complainant’s right arm with his left hand while they walked. A man stepped into the camera’s view and appeared to briefly speak with the Complainant and Officer #1.

At 7:39:51 p.m., the Complainant was led to enter a room at the end of the hallway. CW #1 stepped into the camera’s view and into that room with the Complainant. Officer #1 partially closed the door to that room while he, the WO, and CW #2 stayed in the hallway. A man appeared to speak with Officer #1, the WO, and CW #2.

At 7:41:04 p.m., the Complainant and CW #1 re-entered the hallway. Officer #1 and the WO assisted the Complainant across the hall to another room guiding him by his arms. CW #2 held the Complainant’s bag of belongings and spoke to CW #1, who took something out of the bag.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Waiting Room

At 7:41:17 p.m., the Complainant, Officer #1, and the WO walked into the camera’s view, through the emergency room waiting room, entered a glassed-in anti-room, and moved out of the camera’s view. Officer #1 held onto the Complainant’s right arm as they walked. Officer #1 re-emerged from that room back into the camera’s view and walked off camera. He re-entered that room at 7:43:11 p.m. CW #2 stood with CW #1 and a man in the hallway, and appeared to be engaged in conversation. CW #1 took something from the Complainant’s property bag.

Video Footage – SJH – Room

At 7:41:38 p.m., the Complainant entered the camera’s view that captured the anti-room referenced above, escorted by Officer #1 and the WO. Officer #1 held the Complainant’s right arm and helped him sit in a chair. Officer #1 exited the room at 7:41:46 p.m. The WO was alone in the room with the Complainant. The room had two doors. The one that led to the emergency room waiting area was left open; the second was closed. The Complainant leaned back in a chair with his head rested against the wall and his left leg crossed over his right knee.

At 7:43:11 p.m., Officer #1 entered the room. The Complainant had his hands in his coat pockets.

At 7:44:55 p.m., CW #2 entered the room and sat down.

At 7:46:41 p.m., the Complainant clasped both his hands together and held them in front of himself. He fidgeted in his chair.

At 8:09:03 p.m., the Complainant stood up, and Officer #1 and the WO escorted him through the door that had been closed.

At 8:14:27 p.m., CW #2 opened that door again and the WO, Officer #1, and the Complainant re-entered the room. Officer #1 held the Complainant’s by his jacket’s back and guided him into a chair. Officer #1 sat in another chair. The Complainant tried to lay his head on the left arm of the chair.

At 8:20:38 p.m., the Complainant took his cellular telephone from his jacket pocket with his right hand. He held it in his right hand.

At 8:24:13 p.m., CW #2 left the room through the closed door. At 8:27:32 p.m., the Complainant stood, and Officer #1 and the WO escorted him out through that same door.

At 8:29:55 p.m., the Complainant, Officer #1, and the WO re-entered the room from the open door that led to the emergency room waiting area. Officer #1 held the Complainant by the back of his jacket and helped guide him onto a chair. Officer #1 left the room, leaving the WO alone with the Complainant.

At 8:31:54 p.m., Officer #1 entered the room again and stood at the open doorway.

At 8:32:10 p.m., CW #2 stood at the open door. Officer #1 left the room again and CW #2 stepped in.

At 8:33:22 p.m., Officer #1 opened the closed door, spoke briefly to the WO and CW #2, then left again.

At 8:35:00 p.m., the WO assisted the Complainant to pull a second chair nearer him to stretch his legs out upon.

At 8:43:18 p.m., the Complainant curled his legs up in his chair and leaned his head on his right hand.

At 8:44:17 p.m., CW #2 opened the closed door and let Officer #1 into the room.

At 8:45:18 p.m., a member of the hospital staff came to the open door holding papers. The Complainant stood and the WO assisted him to exit through the closed door. Officer #1, the hospital staff member, and CW #2 followed.

Video Footage – SJH – ER Entrance

At 8:45:43 p.m., the Complainant was led down a hallway by Officer #1 and the WO, who held him by his left arm and the back of his jacket. The hospital staff member followed, as did CW #2. The group turned right and exited the camera’s view through a door.

[The next two video summaries held overlapping records.]

Video Footage – SJH – Hall

At 8:46:03 p.m., the above-referenced hospital employee led the group as they walked down a hallway. The Complainant was behind him. The WO and Officer #1 held his arms as they walked. CW #2 was behind them. The Complainant provided some of his belongings to the hospital employee who put the property in a locker. Officer #1 conducted a brief pat-down of the Complainant’s pockets. The Complainant kept his cellular telephone in his right hand. He was guided into a room by Officer #1, who held the Complainant by his right upper arm and entered with him. The WO entered the room behind them. CW #2 remained in the hallway.

At 8:47:51 p.m., Officer #1 and the WO exited the room. CW #2 stood in the doorway. Officer #1 walked out of the camera’s view while the WO stood and made notes in a memo book.

At 8:48:15 p.m., the WO and CW #2 exited the camera’s view. The door to the room the Complainant had been led into remained open.

Video Footage – SJH – Room

At 8:47:36 p.m., Officer #1 led the Complainant into a room followed by the WO. The Complainant carried his cellular telephone in his right hand. Officer #1 held the Complainant by his right arm and guided him to the bed upon which the Complainant sat. He stumbled slightly as he sat. Officer #1 and the Complainant shared a fist bump. The Complainant used his right hand to bump fists. The Complainant and the WO waved at each other as, at 8:47:50 p.m., Officer #1 and the WO exited the room. CW #2 stood in the doorway and appeared to speak to the Complainant as he kicked his shoes off. CW #2 left the room at 8:48:11 p.m. The Complainant stood up and, at 8:48:26 p.m., the video ended.

Materials Obtained from Police Service

Upon request, the SIU obtained the following records from the HPS between April 18, 2024, and April 30, 2024:

• List of involved police officers;
• List of other involved persons;
• Computer-assisted Dispatch Report;
• Notes – the WO; and
• Copy of MCRRT Memorandum of Understanding between HPS and SJH.

Materials Obtained from Other Sources

The SIU obtained the following records from other sources between April 29, 2024, and May 2, 2024:

• Medical records – the Complainant – JH;
• Medical records – the Complainant – SJH;
• Medical records – the Complainant – X-ray Clinic;
• Video footage – JH; and
• Video footage – SJH.

The evidence collected by the SIU, including interviews with the Complainant and police and non-police witnesses, and video footage that captured the incident in parts, gives rise to the following scenario.

The Complainant checked himself into JH on March 26, 2024. A doctor finalized a Form 1 under the MHA authorizing the Complainant’s involuntary admission at hospital for psychiatric examination. It was decided that the examination would take place at SJH. HPS officers were dispatched to assist in transporting the Complainant to SJH.

The MCRRT, consisting of Officer #1 and CW #2 (a crisis worker) arrived at hospital. They were joined by the WO. The Complainant was taken into custody by the officers, placed in Officer #1’s cruiser, and taken to SJH.

At SJH, the officers and CW #2 waited with the Complainant throughout the triage and admissions process. The Complainant was eventually taken into the care of the hospital and the officers and CW #2 took their leave.

On April 16, 2024, the HPS contacted the SIU to report that they were in receipt of information that day in which it was alleged that a male – the Complainant – had been seriously injured while in the custody of HPS officers on March 26, 2024. The SIU initiated an investigation. The investigation is now concluded. On my assessment of the evidence, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that any HPS officer committed an offence in connection with the Complainant’s reported injuries.

On the totality of the evidence, the dealings between the Complainant and the officers were unremarkable. At no point was force brought to bear by the officers during the time the Complainant was in police custody. As for a fracture the Complainant is said to have suffered in and around the time of the incident, I am unable to reasonably conclude with any confidence that it is evidence of force brought to bear by the police. It was diagnosed on April 2, 2024, a week after the events in question, and there is no mention of any such fracture in the medical records of the Complainant’s time at either JH or SJH.

On the aforementioned-record, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case. The file is closed.

Date: August 12, 2024

Electronically approved by

Joseph Martino

Director

Special Investigations Unit