Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has determined an OPP officer did not commit a crime during an incident in March in which a man was shot in Severn Bridge.
On March 24, shortly before midnight, police attempted to arrest a 30-year-old man wanted on outstanding warrants, but the man fled into a house and hid in the closet, the SIU stated in a news release.
“Police surrounded the home while a warrant was being prepared and called out to the man to surrender,” the release stated. “After not hearing from the man and learning that the man was known to carry drugs, officers entered the house and located him hidden under some clothes.”
The man would not exit the closet, and police had “reason to believe he may have had a knife.” That’s when an officer fired his Anti-Riot Weapon Enfield (ARWEN), striking the man in the upper part of his left leg. The man had no reaction to the shot and was found unresponsive. It was determined he had overdosed and “was in medical distress.”
First aid and “multiple doses” of Narcan were administered. The man was taken to hospital by paramedics and discharged later that day.
SIU director Joseph Martino “found the use of the ARWEN was legally justified to aid in the man’s arrest.
“In the result, there were no reasonable grounds to believe that the officer comported himself other than lawfully in his dealings with the man. The file has been closed.”
The full director’s report can be found here.
