News Release
Man Caused Harm to Himself Prior to the Arrival of Police; SIU Discontinues Hamilton Investigation
Case Number: 19-OCI-135
The Interim Director of the Special Investigations Unit, Joseph Martino, has terminated an investigation into the hospitalization of a 34-year-old man last month in Hamilton.
On the night of June 14, 2019, a family member called 911 to report that his brother was inside a vehicle and consuming a liquid cleaning agent. The family member could not get into the vehicle. The first Hamilton Police Service officer to the scene arrived within five minutes of the 911 call. He assisted in removing the man from the interior of his car, in which he had locked himself as he drank the liquid. Paramedics arrived and transported the man to the emergency department in life-threatening condition. He was stabilized and admitted to the intensive care unit.
Interim Director Martino said, “As it is apparent based on the preliminary inquiries of the SIU that the man caused himself harm before the police even arrived at the scene, and that they acted quickly in removing him from the car so he could be treated by paramedics, there is in my view patently nothing to investigate as far as the potential criminality of any police officer is concerned. Accordingly, the investigation is hereby discontinued and the file 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