News Release
Thunder Bay Arrest of Man who Assaulted Officer Deemed to be Lawful; No Criminal Charges Warranted
Case Number: 20-OCI-287
On the night of October 28, 2020, two Thunder Bay Police Service officers were dispatched to a tavern to investigate a disturbance. The officers walked in on a brawl, ordered the combatants to stand down and then physically intervened to pull them apart. Both officers were then confronted and attacked by an unruly crowd of patrons. Following the assault, a 27-year-old man was arrested and subsequently taken to hospital where he was diagnosed with lacerations of his left leg and right buttock. The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has determined the officers did not cause the man’s injuries, and that their conduct was lawful throughout their interaction with him.
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