News Release
No Reasonable Grounds to Believe Discharge of ARWEN at Woman in Keswick Amounted to Excessive Force
Case Number: 18-OFI-295
Other News Releases Related to Case 18-OFI-295
SIU Investigating Serious Injury Sustained by Woman in Keswick
On the morning of October 3, 2018, York Regional Police was notified of a 47-year-old woman who no longer wanted to live, and wanted police officers to shoot her. Officers were dispatched to an area in Keswick. When the officers located the woman in a motor vehicle, she retrieved a machete from her vehicle and shouted at the officers to kill her. The woman then fled through a forested area and exited onto a residential street. Upon locating the woman, one officer discharged his ARWEN (Anti-Riot Weapon Enfield), striking the woman in one knee. The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Tony Loparco, has determined there are no reasonable grounds to lay criminal charges in this case.
Full Director’s Report (with Incident Narrative, Evidence, and Analysis & Director’s Decision):https://www.siu.on.ca/en/directors_reports.php.
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