News Release
No Charges Against Toronto Officers in Man’s Death
Case Number: 21-TOD-415
Other News Releases Related to Case 21-TOD-415
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has found no reasonable grounds to believe that three Toronto Police Service (TPS) officers committed a criminal offence in connection with the death of a 54-year-old man last October.
On October 29, 2021, TPS received a 911 call from an Uber driver reporting the sound of a gunshot in the area of Kennedy Road and Ellesmere Road. The man had been shot in the chest. Following the shooting, the man went to the Circle K store nearby where he asked the clerk for help and collapsed on the floor. The man left the store and officers located just outside the front door. The officers called for an ambulance. While they waited for the arrival of paramedics, the man writhed in pain and repeatedly said that he was dying. Officers did not provide medical care. Paramedics arrived and took him to hospital.
While Director Martino found it regrettable that one or more of the subject officials did not do more to reassure or engage with the man on the ground, their failure to do so, however, did not endanger the man or cause his death. In this regard, they did the only thing that was available to them – quickly call for more advanced medical intervention. In the result, as there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the subject officials transgressed the limits of care prescribed by the criminal law, there was no basis for proceeding with criminal charges.
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
Lisez ce communiqué en français.
Monica Hudon, siu.media@ontario.ca
SIU Communications/Service des communications, UES