News Release
Officers Did Not Cause or Contribute to Man’s Falling Injuries; SIU Terminates North Bay Investigation
Case Number: 19-OCI-151
The Interim Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has terminated an investigation into the injury sustained by a 54-year-old man last month in North Bay.
On the night of June 26, 2019, a 911 telephone call was made to the North Bay Police Service, but the caller hung up. Prior to the call being ended, the 911 dispatcher heard screaming in the background resulting in officers being dispatched. On arrival at the Main Street West address, officers heard what appeared to be a domestic dispute taking place inside the second-floor apartment. The police officers knocked on the apartment door, but it was not answered. At the same time that the officers kicked open the apartment door, a 54-year-old man jumped out of his bedroom window to the ground below.
Interim Director Martino said, “Based on the SIU’s preliminary inquiries, it is apparent that the man jumped of his own volition as officers entered the residence. While the officers’ presence prompted the man’s drastic recourse, they were lawfully inside the residence to ensure the wellbeing of its residence: see R v Godoy, [1999] 1 SCR 311. In the circumstances, as it is evident that the officers neither caused nor contributed to the man’s injury in any fashion that could attract criminal liability, there is patently nothing further to investigate, and the file is closed.”
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