Ontario's police watchdog has ruled no charges will be laid against four London police officers after a man's finger was fractured during an arrest.
A report from the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) determined the officers' use of force to arrest a 34-year-old man was necessary to place the suspect into police custody.
At approximately 8:41 p.m. on January 7, police were called to a cul-de-sac in the area of Perth Avenue near Hawkesbury Avenue for a domestic dispute. The suspect was also reportedly in possession of a stolen vehicle and wanted on an outstanding arrest warrant.
According to the SIU, three officers with the Criminal Investigation Division attended the scene in an unmarked minivan to search for the accused, who was later located in a stolen Ford Focus on Beckworth Avenue.
Police pursued the driver as he travelled toward a dead-end roundabout on the west side of Perth Avenue and turned his vehicle around to head east. The officer driving the minivan swerved into the oncoming lane in an attempt to block the suspect's path. The accused then drove up a curb and into a snowbank hitting a light pole.
The SIU says the officer drove the van up against the car while the driver revved the engine to flee. All three officers exited the minivan, went to the driver's side door of the suspect vehicle, and demanded that he exit it before attempting to force him out.
"Once out of the vehicle, the complainant continued to struggle with the officers, attempting to pull away," the release from the SIU read. "He was forced to the ground after [an officer] delivered two strikes to the complainant’s legs with his [baton.] The officers were able to wrest control of his left arm and bring it around his back, but the complainant continued to resist and refused to release his right arm from under his torso."
While officers worked to apprehend the man, the SIU said a fourth officer arrived and was able to pull the accused's arm free and handcuffed him after delivering several knee strikes to his right side.
The man was later treated in hospital for a fractured right finger.
SIU Director Joseph Martino's analysis of the incident cited that the man's strenuous efforts to evade custody posed a risk to public safety and the safety of the officers.
"I am satisfied on reasonable grounds that the force used by the subject officials was at all times commensurate with and proportional to the exigencies at hand," said Martino. "Accordingly, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges against any of the officers."
The full SIU report can be read here.
