No charges for Toronto cop after cyclist seriously injured in arrest in May, SIU says

Ontario’s police watchdog will not lay criminal charges against a Toronto police officer involved in an arrest that seriously injured a cyclist in May.

In a report released Tuesday, Joseph Martino, director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), said there is no basis for charges against the officer because the force used in the arrest was “within the range of what was lawful in the circumstances.”

The arrest occurred in the area of Queen Quay W. and Little Norway Crescent on May 31. The cyclist, 21, suffered a mild traumatic brain injury.

According to the report, the cyclist was riding in a dedicated bike lane eastbound on Queen Quay W., approaching little Norway Crescent, when he went through a stop sign. As he went through the stop sign, he turned his head towards two police officers in the southwest corner of the intersection and said: “F–k the police.”

The police signalled to other police in the southwest corner of the intersection to stop the cyclist, the report says. The officers were there as part of targeted bicycle enforcement.

Officer ‘fell on top’ of cyclist, report says

According to the report, the cyclist tried to avoid an officer who stood in front of him by turning to the left and cycling eastward away from him. The officer chased him and extended his arm to make contact with the cyclist’s backpack.

The cyclist lost control of the bike and fell onto a grass boulevard and sidewalk on the north side of Queens Quay W., the report says. The officer then “fell on top of the Complainant and forced him flat on the ground,” the report says.

Other officers went over and pinned the cyclist to the ground for a period of time while he was handcuffed behind his back. He was ticketed for alleged violations of the Highway Traffic Act, released at the scene and sought medical attention later.

“It is unclear in the footage whether the officer made contact with the Complainant’s backpack intending to grab a hold of him or to push the Complainant off the bike,” Martino said.

“There is always a risk that physically engaging a cyclist might result in a fall, but the risk of injury was a moderate one in this case as the Complainant had significantly slowed when the officer stepped out in front of him.”

Martino said the officer would have been “rightly concerned” that the cyclist would continue to try to flee.

“That consideration justifies the officer’s efforts to wrestle the Complainant firmly to the ground and to keep him pinned there pending the arrival of the other officers.”

Video shows police tackling cyclist to the ground

A video of the arrest, shared on social media, shows police arresting a cyclist after tackling him to the ground.

David Shellnutt, a personal injury lawyer and part of The Biking Lawyer team, said days after the arrest that police used excessive force and the police response wasn’t appropriate given the alleged offence.

“It has to be reasonable, necessary and proportionate — and someone not stopping at a stop sign, it’s not proportionate to tackle them off their bike,” Shellnutt had CBC Radio’s Metro Morning.

The SIU investigates incidents involving police and civilians that have resulted in serious injury, death or allegations of sexual assault.