News Release
No Charges to Issue in Relation to the Discharge of Police ARWENs that occurred in Oakville
Case Number: 20-OFP-349
To apprehend the man, police officers deployed one round from an Anti Riot Weapon ENfield (ARWEN), followed by a conducted-energy weapon (CEW) discharge. The man was apprehended under the Mental Health Act (MHA) and taken to Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. He was held for a mental health assessment.
The man did not suffer any injuries as a result of his interactions with the police.
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has determined there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the officer acted other than lawfully in firing his ARWEN at the man, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges against the officer.
Full Director’s Report (with Incident Narrative, Evidence, and Analysis & Director’s Decision): https://www.siu.on.ca/en/directors_report_details.php?drid=1214
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