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Ontario’s Watchdog has weighed in on an investigation involving the Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS).
On Friday, July 5th, just after midnight, officers were notified of a wanted person in the area of Brant Street and Blairholm Avenue in Burlington. The 36-year-old man had a warrant out for his arrest. He was taken into custody within the hour. According to the report, an officer punched the man, which resulted in a broken nose.
The SIU serves as a neutral party when investigating police conduct following investigations. Here’s more from the SIU website:
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
SIU Director Joseph Martino found no reasonable grounds to believe the officer committed a criminal offence. He concluded the use of force was legally justified as the man had adopted an aggressive posture, intruded into another officer’s personal space, and had threatened to assault an officer.
The case has been dismissed.
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