EMO, Ont. — Ontario's Special Investigations Unit has cleared the OPP of any criminal wrongdoing in an incident related to the arrest of a drunk driver.
On May 2, 2019, police received 911 calls about a pickup truck being operated by an apparently inebriated driver in the Emo area, just west of Fort Frances.
Officers located the vehicle stopped in the middle of a road off Highway 11 near Devlin, and found a 51-year-old man asleep in the driver's seat, and slumped over the centre console.
An infant child was sleeping in a child's seat in the back of the vehicle.
When the officers roused the individual, the SIU report on the case states, he became "actively resistant" and tried to start the truck.
He was then forcibly removed from the vehicle and taken to the ground.
The man was arrested for impaired driving and resisting arrest, lodged in the Fort Frances OPP cell, and released from custody the same today.
Next day, he called the police to report that his left arm had been broken during his arrest.
Records from a medical clinic confirmed he had been diagnosed with a fractured elbow and forearm.
In a report issued Wednesday, interim SIU Director Joseph Martino said he has determined there are no reasonable grounds to lay criminal charges related to the injuries.
Martino said he accepted that the complainant's injuries occurred during his arrest, most likely in the process of being yanked from his vehicle by the police.
However, he said he is satisfied that the officers "acted reasonably and lawfully throughout their dealings with the complainant."
As a result, the SIU has closed this file.
