A Toronto police officer, who struck and killed a 64-year-old woman in July while driving his police cruiser with the rooftop lights on, was cleared of wrongdoing Monday.

According to the province’s Special Investigations Unit, the officer was on duty and was working to escort a funeral procession on Saturday, July 28 when he struck and killed Satyawatti (Janet) Katryan on Highway 27, near Rexdale Boulevard.

The SIU investigation found that the officer was travelling north along Highway 27 and was taking turns with other police cruisers to stop traffic ahead of the funeral procession.

According to a release from the SIU, the officer stopped traffic at Rexdale Boulevard before passing the procession, with his roof lights on and his siren used in short bursts, in anticipation of stopping traffic at the next intersection.

The posted speed limit was 70 km/h and the officer briefly accelerated to 100 km/h and then decelerated to 68 km/h while passing the procession, the SIU found.

As this was happening, Katryan began crossing Highway 27 from the east side to the west side. According to the SIU, she was “between cars in the funeral procession” and her head was turned as the officer approached in his cruiser.

The officer say Katryan and used his brakes, but he still hit Katryan, striking her with his right front bumper.

Katryan hit the windshield and fell to the ground unconscious, the SIU said.

The SIU said the cruiser was travelling between 38 and 44 km/h when it struck Katryan.

The officer got out to help Katryan, but a coroner pronounced her dead at the scene.

According to SIU director Ian Scott, the officer was not responsible for Katryan’s death, and no charges will be laid.

“Unfortunately, she was jay-walking into traffic on a roadway where pedestrians are not allowed,” Scott said in a statement. “She then failed to see the cruiser driven by the subject officer until it was too late, even though it was not speeding and had its emergency equipment activated. 

“While her death is tragic, she was in my view the author of her own misfortune when she chose to cross this highway at a prohibited location and not pay attention to the oncoming traffic,” Scott said.