SIU clears Peel police officer after 15-year-old evading arrest sustained serious injuries

The logo of the Ontario Special Investigations Unit is pictured in Toronto on Friday, April 12, 2024. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Arlyn McAdorey)

Ontario's police watchdog has cleared an officer of any wrongdoing in the arrest of a 15-year-old boy who was seriously injured after attempting to evade arrest.

The incident happened on June 13, when Peel Regional Police (PRP) were called to find a teenager who allegedly took his parents' van without their permission, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said in a release issued on Wednesday.

The civilian agency said the "events in question" started at a gas station in Mississauga, on the northwest corner of Winston Churchill Boulevard and Thomas Street, and continued south across Thomas toward a plaza on the southwest corner before ending on a sidewalk on Winston Churchill.

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The SIU said that one of the officers called to the scene spotted the van and pulled his cruiser in front of it while on Bentley Street. Two other cruisers surrounding the rear and driver's side, the agency reported.

The teen, who was driving the van, then drove around the cruiser and continued east towards Winston Churchill Boulevard, where the SIU said he turned right. They added that there were two male passengers in the back seat.

Police then followed the van until it came to a stop at a gas station just two blocks away, where it nearly collided with a gas pump.

All three occupants then got out of the van and ran away, the SIU said, prompting attending officers to park their cruisers and chase after them.

The 15-year-old, also referred to as the Complainant in the SIU report, bolted across Thomas Street and onto the grounds of the plaza.

The SIU said he continued to run around a bank building before making it onto a sidewalk on Winston Churchill, where a PRP officer fired a Taser that hit him in the back.

The report says the teen continued to run, prompting the officer to deploy the Taser again.

"This time, his body locked-up and he fell to the ground, striking his face. The impact resulted in broken teeth and a fractured jaw," SIU Director Joseph Martino wrote in the report, adding that after his arrest the teen was taken to the hospital to be treated for his injuries.

Though the teen was seriously injured in his arrest, Martino concluded there are "no reasonable grounds" to believe the PRP officer committed a criminal offence in connection with what occurred.

Under the Criminal Code, Martino noted officers are "immune from criminal liability" for the use of force to perform their duties as long as that force was "reasonably necessary."

"The (officer) had information to believe that the Complainant had take his parents' van without permission. In the circumstances, the officer was within his rights in moving to take the Complainant into custody for possession of stolen property," Martino said.

As for the force used by the officer to arrest the teen, Martino said the evidence fell short of "reasonably suggesting it was unlawful."

Since the 15-year-old drove dangerously around a police blockade, nearly struck a gas pump, and run away from officers, the report concludes "some force was going to be necessary" to arrest him.

"Bringing the Complainant to the ground made sense as it would immediately bring his flight to an end while better positioning the officer to manage any continuing resistance," he said.

While there is always a risk of injury to bring someone to the ground, Martino said he was "satisfied" by the officer's decision as the chase occurred near live lanes of traffic.

For all of those reasons, the SIU director determined there is no basis for the officer to be criminally charged and closed the file.

The SIU is a civilian law enforcement agency that investigates incidents involving police where a death, serious injury, firearm discharge or a sexual assault allegation occurred.