Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has cleared a Toronto police officer of wrongdoing after his cruiser collided with a car in Etobicoke in a crash that seriously injured an 18-year-old man earlier this year.

In a report on Monday, SIU director Joseph Martino determined there were “no reasonable grounds” to believe that the officer committed a crime in the crash on April 28 at the intersection of Kipling Avenue and Albion Road at 10:15 a.m.

Martino said the 18-year-old was taken to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, where he was intubated in hospital and spent time in an intensive care unit, but that the exact nature and extent of his injuries are unknown.

A passenger in his vehicle and the officer were both taken to hospital for minor injuries and released, the SIU said in a news release that day.

Police officer travelling above speed limit: SIU

According to Martino’s analysis of the crash, the officer’s marked police cruiser was headed north on Kipling Avenue, when it collided with the 18-year-old’s Honda going west on Albion Road.

Martino said the Honda entered the intersection against a red light, while the police cruiser had a green light. However, the officer was driving above the speed limit by about 25 to 35 km/h as he approached and entered the intersection.

Martino said he had to consider whether the officer was guilty of dangerous driving causing bodily harm, an offence he said results from “a marked departure from the level of care that a reasonable person would have observed in the circumstances.” He said the officer did not engage in such conduct.

“Perhaps, had he been driving at a slower rate of speed in keeping with the speed limit, he could have noticed the Honda and taken action to avoid a collision,” Martino writes.

However, he said, “there is no evidence of erratic driving by the officer, loss of control or any other conduct suggestive of dangerous, careless, unsafe or reckless operation of the vehicle.”

Crash occurred after man didn’t stop at red light: SIU

The force of the crash pushed the Honda’s passenger side into a traffic pole on the intersection’s north side, Martino said. He concluded, however, that the 18-year-old was the “proximate cause” of the crash.

“The collision would not have happened had the Complainant come to a stop at the red light,” Martino writes.

“For the foregoing reasons, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case.”

At the time, Amy Davey, a spokesperson for Toronto police said a scout car was involved in the crash, which was not related to a vehicle pursuit.

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