News Release
SIU Concludes Investigation in Motorcycle Fatality
Case Number: 14-OVD-128
Other News Releases Related to Case 14-OVD-128
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Tony Loparco, has concluded that there are no reasonable grounds to charge a York Regional Police (YRP) officer with any criminal offence in relation to the motorcycle death of a 28-year-old man in June of this year.
The SIU assigned four investigators and two forensic investigators to probe the circumstances of this incident. Four witness officers and seven civilian witnesses were interviewed. The subject officer did not consent to an interview or provide a copy of his notes, as is his legal right. As part of the investigation the SIU also collected the GPS report from the subject officer’s vehicle.
The SIU investigation found that the following events took place on Saturday, June 14, 2014:
- At approximately 11:15 p.m., the man was operating his motorcycle eastbound on Queensville Side Road.
- At about the same time, the subject officer was in the area, also travelling eastbound on Queensville Side Road, investigating a report of a suspicious vehicle. The motorcyclist who was behind the cruiser, collided with the police cruiser as the subject officer was attempting to execute a U-turn intending to proceed westbound on the roadway.
Director Loparco concluded, “The forensic reconstruction of the events around the collision put the motorcycle’s speed at about 148 to 154 km/h just before it left a skid mark in a failed effort to avoid striking the cruiser. Its speed at impact was calculated to be about 142 km/h. Given the motorcycle’s speed, I rather suspect the motorcycle would not have been visible to the officer if indeed he checked the roadway in that direction before initiating his turn. A civilian witness’ evidence gives us some sense of this possibility when she recounts that the motorcycle could not be seen in her rear view mirror when she checked it 30 seconds before it passed her at high speed without any warning.
“In the end, it seems that one or more of the man’s speed, low lighting conditions and possible visual obstructions caused by construction work in the area, contributed to the collision that occurred. Be that as it may, even assuming for the moment that the officer was something less than careful as he proceeded into his U-turn, I am satisfied that this singular indiscretion is far less than the marked departure from the level of care that a reasonable person would have exercised in the circumstances – the standard prescribed by the criminal law for there to be reasonable grounds to lay a criminal charge.”
The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates the conduct of officials (police officers as well as special constables with the Niagara Parks Commission and peace officers with the Legislative Protective Service) that may have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault and/or the discharge of a firearm at a person. All investigations are conducted by SIU investigators who are civilians. Under the Special Investigations Unit Act, the Director of the SIU must
- consider whether the official has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation
- depending on the evidence, cause a criminal charge to be laid against the official where grounds exist for doing so, or close the file without any charges being laid
- publicly report the results of its investigations