News Release
Man Alone was Responsible for Injuries Suffered After Jumping Over Wall; SIU Discontinues Innisfil Investigation
Case Number: 24-PCI-091
The Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has terminated an investigation into the serious injury suffered by a 28-year-old man in February in Innisfil.
In the morning of February 28, 2024, the man was alone inside a friend’s apartment in Innisfil when he heard bangs on the door of the apartment. The bangs on the door were from plainclothes Ontario Provincial Police officers there to execute a search warrant. Uncertain of who was at the door, the man fled out the back door and onto the grounds of the building complex. In bare feet, he ran and leaped over a chest-high wall. He fell to the ground below – a distance of several metres – and fractured his right heel in the process.
Based on the SIU’s preliminary inquiries, including a review of video footage that captured the incident, Director Martino was satisfied the investigation should be discontinued. The officers did pursue the man, but they did not have an opportunity to physically engage him before he jumped over the wall. The man was responsible for the consequences of an ill-fated decision to jump over a wall not knowing what the descent on the other side was like. On this record, there was patently nothing to investigate as far as the potential criminal liability of any police officer was concerned.
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