HAMILTON, Ont. - A Hamilton police officer has been acquitted on an assault charge in connection with injuries suffered by a teen last year.
The province's Special Investigations Unit charged Officer Ryan Gagnon with assault causing bodily harm after investigating injuries sustained by a 16-year-old boy on July 22, 2012.
Hamilton police say the teen sustained a broken tooth and facial injury when he attempted to strike officers working in the custody area.
After at a two-day trial in October, Gagnon was acquitted and exonerated on Thursday by Justice Ian B. Cowan in a Brampton court.
Cowan ruled that the officer used reasonable force in repelling a perceived assault and the force was not more than was reasonable in the circumstances.
The SIU is an arm's-length agency that investigates reports involving police where there has been death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault.
