City police officer not responsible for man's injuries - SIU

NEWS RELEASE

SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT

************************* SIU concludes custody injury investigation in Sault Ste. Marie

MISSISSAUGA, ON (August 23, 2011) - The director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Ian Scott, has concluded that there are no reasonable grounds to charge the subject officer of the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service (SSMPS) with a criminal offence in regards to the injuries sustained by 42-year-old Ernie Caputo on August 10, 2011.

The SIU assigned two investigators and two forensic investigators to investigate this occurrence.

The scene was processed, evidence was gathered, and a scale diagram was prepared.

Relevant documents were obtained from the SSMPS.

Two civilian witnesses were interviewed.

Five officers were designated as witness officers and interviewed.

One officer was designated as a subject officer and interviewed.

The SIU investigation determined that an officer stopped a vehicle being operated by Mr. Caputo intending to arrest him for a criminal matter.

He then agreed to let Mr. Caputo return home to be arrested there.

Mr. Caputo drove home followed by the officer.

Once home, Mr. Caputo ran inside, locked himself in and refused to come out.

Officers from the SSMPS Emergency Services Unit arrived on the scene.

A decision was made to enter Mr. Caputo's home and the officers subsequently breached the door.

The subject officer and a witness officer went to the second floor where they found Mr. Caputo lying on a bed in a bedroom with multiple stab wounds.

EMS was called and Mr. Caputo was transported to the Sault Ste. Marie General Hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Director Scott said, "In my view, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that the subject officer committed a criminal offence in relation to the injuries sustained by Mr. Caputo on August 10, 2011. Mr. Caputo's injuries were self-inflicted and accordingly the subject officer could not have been responsible for causing them."

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.

Under the Police Services Act, the director of the SIU must consider whether an officer has committed a criminal offence in connection with the incident under investigation depending on the evidence, lay a criminal charge against the officer if appropriate or close the file without any charges being laid report the results of any investigations to the Attorney General.

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