SIU clears London cops after officer shot in eye with non-lethal round during training

The incident occurred on June 23 as officers with the London police emergency response unit conducted a hostage-taking simulation at a decommissioned fire hall in south London.

Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has cleared two London police officers of criminal wrongdoing after another officer was shot in the eye with a non-lethal projectile during a training exercise over the summer, the agency announced Thursday.

The incident occurred on the morning of June 23 as officers with the London Police Service’s emergency response unit conducted a hostage-taking simulation at London Fire Station 11, a decommissioned fire hall on Westminster Drive that is used for training purposes. The incident was not reported publicly by either London police or the SIU at the time.

According to the SIU, ERU members hold training exercises every Wednesday. On this particular day, the simulation was “designed to culminate in ERU members forcing their way into the fire hall in an attempt to apprehend hostage-takers,” the agency’s report says.

The officer struck, also the complainant, was in charge of running the simulation, and was participating as one of the hostage-takers, according to the SIU.

In addition to the two officers at the centre of the SIU’s probe, identified as Subject official #1 and Subject official #2 in the agency’s report, 13 other “witness officials” were present.

After a mock firefight in the garage bay of the fire hall between tactical officers and the “assailants” using “paintball-type” projectiles called Simunition rounds, the SIU says the complainant “retreated past a hallway, through a kitchen area and into a smaller room off of the kitchen,” where he waited to ambush the officers as part of the exercise.

As Subject official #2 made his way into the kitchen area, he observed the silhouette of the complainant in the doorway of the smaller room and fired his rifle, with one of the rounds striking the complainant in the right eye, the SIU says.

The exercise was immediately brought to a halt, and the complainant was taken to hospital and treated surgically for his serious injury, the SIU said.