News Release
SIU Terminates Mississauga Investigation as Police Officer did Not Cause or Contribute to Man’s Injury
Case Number: 20-OCI-095
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has terminated an investigation into the arrest of a 29-year-old man last month in Mississauga.
Shortly after 4 a.m. on April 24, 2020, the man was observed to be damaging vehicles on Montevideo Road, prompting an individual to contact police. Upon being confronted by an officer, the man refused to get on the ground as directed by the officer and was subjected to two deployments from a conducted energy weapon. The second discharge felled the man, who was then handcuffed and taken into custody. The man was later taken to hospital where he was diagnosed with a foot injury.
Director Martino said, “Prior to the arrival of police, the man had been stomping on some metal carts, following which his right foot was injured. As it is established on the foregoing record that the officer neither caused nor contributed to the man’s injury in any fashion that could attract criminal liability, the SIU is without jurisdiction to investigate. Accordingly, the investigation is hereby discontinued, 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