The province’s police oversight agency has determined no charges will be laid against an officer involved in a collision with a motorcyclist this past summer.
During the evening of June 26, an Oxford Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officer was travelling east on Lisgar Avenue just west of Van Norman Drive in Tillsonburg, when a motorcycle heading west entered into the other lane. As a result, both vehicles collided head on.
The motorcyclist was thrown off his bike during the crash and was taken to hospital with serious injuries. The man suffered fractures to his pelvis, right ankle and skull. The area was closed for several hours that evening while police investigated and the Special Investigations Unit was then contacted.
On Monday, the (SIU) announced that it has found no reasonable grounds to proceed with criminal charges against the officer as no evidence was found that the officer did anything illegal to contribute to the cause of the crash.
According to the SIU, the driver of the motorcycle had been driving erratically before the collision. He allegedly was speeding, passing other westbound traffic in the eastbound lanes, and drifting into the eastbound lane.
“The officer was travelling below the speed limit within his proper lane of traffic when he was suddenly confronted with a motorcycle that had entered his lane and tried to avoid the collision,” said SIU Director Joseph Martino.
Martino has since concluded the investigation.
The SIU invokes its mandate if a member(s) of Ontario’s police services, select special constables and peace officers is involved in an incident that causes serious injury, death, the discharge of a firearm at a person or an allegation of sexual assault.
