Watchdog clears Ottawa police in man's fall from balcony

The Special Investigations Unit. Photo by ASHLEY FRASER /POSTMEDIA

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Ontario’s civilian police oversight agency said on Oct. 1 it had terminated an investigation into serious injuries to a 26-year-old man during an incident in Ottawa this summer.

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An online report by the Special Investigations Unit said on the afternoon a woman made a 911 call to the Ottawa Police Service Communications Centre on the afternoon of June 3. The call became disconnected, but an address associated with the phone number was identified and two Ottawa Police Service patrol units were dispatched for a welfare check.

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Upon arrival, officers spoke with the occupants and at some point a man went over a balcony. He was located on the ground below and then transported to hospital, where he was diagnosed with a fractured left femur and a dislocated right knee.

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Based on preliminary inquiries, including a review of video that captured the incident in parts, SIU Deputy Director Stacey O’Brien was satisfied the investigation should be discontinued, the report said.

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“It was plain and obvious that the police did nothing that could conceivably attract criminal liability in connection with the man’s injuries,” the report said, adding the file had been closed.

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Also on Oct. 1, the Smiths Falls Police Service reported the SIU had invoked its mandate to investigate a single-vehicle crash in that community.

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According to a news release, the crash occurred at about 4:24 a.m. on Sept. 30 on Queen Street near Albert Street.

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Before the crash, the release said, a Smiths Falls officer had attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The driver failed to stop the vehicle and drove away from the area.

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The driver of the crashed vehicle was transported to hospital, the release added.

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