The Independent Investigation Unit (IIU) has concluded its investigation into injuries sustained by a male during his arrest by RCMP on Sagkeeng First Nation this summer. It has concluded no charge should be laid against the subject officer.
On June 14, 2019, members of the Powerview RCMP responded to a call regarding a violent male at a home on the First Nation. Upon arrival at the home, officers could hear a man screaming incoherently in a bedroom and were advised by the man’s grandparents that he was under the influence of crystal meth. When officers called to the man that he was under arrest, he came running from the bedroom with a long object wrapped in a black garbage bag and yelled “bang bang.” Several officers deployed conductive energy weapons (Tasers) and one officer used his baton to strike the man on his left forearm.
The man was eventually taken into custody and transported to Pine Falls Hospital where it was determined he had sustained a fracture to his left forearm that required surgery. As a broken arm caused by the actions of a police officer is considered a serious injury under IIU regulations, the agency was mandated to investigate.
In his report on the IIU investigation, Civilian Director Zane Tessler noted the five responding officers reasonably thought the black object held by the man was a firearm and two of them drew their service pistols. When one officer noticed the object was a wooden bat, he notified the other officers and struck the man once on the arm with his baton in an effort to disarm and disable him. Tessler found the officer’s use of force was both reasonable and justified in the circumstances.
There are charges pending against the man as a result of this incident. Once the charges have been dealt with by the courts, the civilian director’s report on the IIU investigation will be made public.
The details of this investigation were first announced on September 16, 2019.
