Timmins police officer cleared for shooting suspect during arrest
A 31-year-old man was shot during an arrest last fall and now Ontario's Special Investigations Unit has cleared the Timmins police officer responsible of any wrongdoing.
The officer responsible was on patrol when he reportedly saw the suspect run from a residence on Commercial Avenue around 1:25 a.m. Oct. 31. Around that time, the resident called police to report a break-in in progress and said that someone he didn't know broke the side window of his house by throwing a beer bottle at it, the director's report of the incident said.
The suspect was seen meeting up with another man and a woman on the street before getting into a vehicle and driving away, the report said. The responding officer pulled them over nearby at the intersection of Rea Street and Bannerman Avenue.
Another officer arrived and during the arrest, one man ran away on foot while the suspect fought with the two officers trading punches. At one point during the fight, the suspect pulled out a Ruger pistol shot twice at the officers and was then shot in the lower back by one of them when he tried to get away.
The man sustained serious injuries in the shooting and was taken to hospital by paramedics. He had surgery for a fractured spine as a result of the incident.
Video footage from both of the officer's vehicles as well as surveillance footage from a home on Rea Street South was used as evidence in the decision.
The female driver was arrested without incident and a canine track was conducted for the second man that fled.
No injuries to the police officers were mentioned in the incident report.
Because the suspect shot at the officers first, the SIU director, Joseph Martino, said the officer was justified in shooting him in order to protect himself and his colleague and no criminal charges will be laid.
"On my assessment of the evidence, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the (subject officer) committed a criminal offence in connection with the shooting," Martino said in his decision. "I am satisfied that the force used by the officers during the struggle was reasonably necessary pursuant to section 25(1) of the criminal code. More specifically, in the context of an individual determined to break free from the officers, and whose resistance escalated to the point of producing a firearm despite the several punches to the head delivered by (witnessing officer) #2 and the (subject officer), the evidence not does establish that the force used by the officers during this time was excessive."
Read the full report here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From AI running wild to collapsing ecosystems, government report outlines future disruptions
From artificial intelligence running wild to collapsing ecosystems, a new Canadian government report outlines 35 disruptions that could rattle the country in the near future.
B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton hospitalized after prison attack
British Columbia serial killer Robert Pickton was attacked and sustained life-threatening injuries in a Quebec prison Sunday in what officials described as a 'major assault.'
opinion Tom Mulcair: With Trudeau spiralling, Mark Carney waits in the wings
In his latest column for CTVNews.ca, former NDP leader Tom Mulcair argues that if there's an unofficial frontrunner in the eventual race to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader, it has to be former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney.
Toronto Blue Jays fan struck by 110 m.p.h foul ball offered tickets, signed baseball by team
The Toronto Blue Jays have offered tickets and a signed baseball to a fan who says she was struck in the face by a 110 m.p.h (177 km/h) foul ball at Friday’s game.
Matthew Perry's death is being investigated over ketamine level found in actor's blood, reports say
An investigation has been opened into the death of Matthew Perry and how the “Friends” actor received the anesthetic ketamine, which was ruled a contributing factor in his death.
OPP continues to investigate boat collision north of Kingston, Ont. that left 3 people dead
Ontario Provincial Police continue to investigate a long weekend fatal boat collision on Bobs Lake, north of Kingston, Ont.
Police in Ontario say suspects charged in armed home invasion near Toronto part of 'larger criminal network'
Police in Ontario say a group of suspects charged in an armed home invasion north of Toronto last year were driving a vehicle stolen in a carjacking in Calgary just one month earlier.
Stolen septic truck swerves through traffic, spike belt needed to stop it: Manitoba RCMP
A 29-year-old woman has been charged after police say she stole a septic truck from a Manitoba community and drove erratically on the highway.
Orphan orca's extended family spotted off northeast side of Vancouver Island
Members of a killer whale pod related to an orphan orca calf that escaped a remote British Columbia tidal lagoon last month have been spotted off the northeast coast of Vancouver Island.