A London police officer who administered naloxone to a man experiencing an overdose has been cleared by Ontario's police watchdog.
The Special Investigations Unit announced Wednesday that it had terminated its investigation into the August 22 incident, saying the officer was not responsible for the man's death.
Police were called to a home in the area of Adelaide Street and Huron Street around 7:40 p.m. on August 22. A woman reported that her boyfriend was in medical distress and that she had already given him two doses of naloxone. The officer administered another dose while EMS workers tended to the man. The emergency responders managed to regain a pulse and the man was rushed to hospital. However, three days later he was declared brain dead.
“The officer’s actions did not contribute to the man’s death in any way," said SIU Director Tony Loparco. "Accordingly, I have terminated the investigation into this incident.”
The incident happened on the same day that the association representing OPP officers called on the SIU to end the practice of investigating officers who administer naloxone to people experiencing an overdose.
“Subjecting police officers across Ontario to full investigations in these cases is not reasonable or fair,” Ontario Provincial Police Association (OPPA) President Rob Jamieson said at the time. “Our members do what every other first responder would do in these situations – they try to save a life. But when they use naloxone and the victim does not survive, they know that a long and stressful investigation by the SIU will soon follow. Putting an officer through a traumatic situation, then asking them to relive that very trauma through the SIU investigation could be detrimental to their mental health.”