News Release
Officer Did Nothing to Cause or Contribute to Man’s Fall; SIU Discontinues Toronto Investigation
Case Number: 22-TCI-325
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has terminated an investigation into the serious injury suffered by a 39-year-old man in December in Toronto.
In the afternoon of December 24, 2022, the man was on an upper floor of a Nordstrom store on Yonge Street when he was confronted by store security and a paid-duty Toronto Police Service officer. The man was suspected of trying to steal a pair of sneakers. The man fled from their direction through an emergency stairwell exit, after which he climbed down a flight of stairs. Arriving at a landing, the man scaled the railing and jumped to the ground below. He was arrested and transported to hospital for treatment of a fractured femur.
Based on the SIU’s preliminary inquiries, which included a review of video footage that captured the incident in parts, Director Martino was satisfied that the investigation should be discontinued. Aside from setting the stage for the man’s flight, it was evident that the officer did nothing to cause or contribute to the man’s fall that could conceivably attract criminal sanction. There being patently nothing to investigate as far as the potential criminal liability of the officer is concerned, the file has been 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
Lisez ce communiqué en français.
Monica Hudon, siu.media@ontario.ca
SIU Communications/Service des communications, UES