Northern Ont. police tased man to save him from himself, investigation concludes

A suspect in a cell was harming himself when police subdued him with a stun gun last July, the Special Investigations Unit has concluded. (File)

A suspect in a cell was harming himself when police subdued him with a stun gun last July, the Special Investigations Unit has concluded.

Almost the entire incident was caught on video, making the investigation easier, SIU director Joseph Martino said of the incident at the Ontario Provincial Police detachment in Temiskaming.

The 40-year-old man had been arrested July 5 and "was of unsound mind at the time and set upon a course of self-harm in the cell," the SIU said in a news release Friday.

"This consisted of the man falling backwards such that his head would strike the cell concrete bench on the way down. Officers attempted to enter the cell to render assistance but were thwarted for a period by the man holding the door closed."

Officers used the stun gun to gain entry and remove the man from the cell.

"Paramedics on scene took him away to hospital, where he was treated for cuts to the head," the release said.

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"Based on the SIU’s preliminary inquiries, including a review of video footage that largely captured the incident, director Martino was satisfied the investigation should be discontinued."

The evidence showed that police did nothing "that could conceivably attract criminal sanction in connection with his injuries," the SIU said.

"The file has been closed."