News Release
No Charges for OPP Police Dog Handler After Woman Suffers Serious Injury
Case Number: 20-PCI-312
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has found no reasonable grounds to believe that an OPP police dog handler committed a criminal offence in connection with a woman’s head injury in November 2020 in Leamington.
On November 18, 2020, the OPP was executing a search warrant under the Cannabis Act at a Leamington residence when a police dog bit a 41-year-old woman who had been hiding in a bedroom closet.
Director Martino found he was unable to reasonably conclude that the police dog handler transgressed the limits of care prescribed by criminal law. Accordingly, the file has been closed.
Full Director’s Report (with Incident Narrative, Evidence, and Analysis & Director’s Decision): https://www.siu.on.ca/en/directors_report_details.php?drid=1511
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
Lisez ce communiqué en français.
Kristy Denette, siu.media@ontario.ca
SIU Communications/Service des communications, UES