A London police officer has been cleared of any wrongdoing after injuring a teen who threw a brick through his window.
The Special Investigations Unit began an investigation after the December 2, 2021 incident. According to the SIU's investigation, the off-duty officer was in his home around 12:30 a.m. when the brick came through the window. He went outside the investigate and saw two males walking down the street. Believing that one of them had thrown the brick, the officer chased them.
"Though aware that they were being pursued by an off-duty police officer – the SO (Subject Officer) had informed them of such while directing them to stop – they fled westward as the officer gave chase," the SIU said.
The officer caught up to one of the males, a 17-year-old, about 150 metres from the scene and tackled him to the ground. The SIU says the officer and the teen exchanged punches before the officer was able to pin the teen to the ground. He then called 911 for help.
Officers soon arrived on the scene and took the teen into custody. Following his arrest, the teen was taken to hospital where he was diagnosed with a fractured orbital bone.
" On my assessment of the evidence, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the SO committed a criminal offence in connection with the Complainant’s arrest and injury," said SIU Director Joseph Martino. "In the result, as there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the SO comported himself other than lawfully in the course of his engagement with the Complainant, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case. The file is closed."
The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates incidents involving police that have resulted in death, serious injury, sexual assault or the discharging of a firearm.