Hamilton man suffers serious injuries during arrest, SIU finds no wrongdoing

A 40-year-old Hamilton man suffered serious injuries during his arrest by Hamilton Police on May 30.

According to a report by the Special Investigation Unit, police officers were dispatched to a residential area at Munn St. and Upper Sherman Ave., following reports of a person moving between houses and garages.

Authorities say, at about 10:30 p.m., the man was confronted by officers in the backyard of a house on Queensdale Avenue East.

The 40-year-old attempted to evade arrest by running toward a gate leading to the front of the house.

Additional officers intervened, tripping the man to the ground. A struggle ensued before he was eventually handcuffed and taken into custody.

Following his arrest, the man was transported to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with a fractured right orbital bone.

Based on the evidence presented by officers and the suspect, SIU Director Joseph Martino determined there were no reasonable grounds to believe that an officer committed a criminal offence in the man’s arrest and injury.

“While I accept that the suspect’s injury was the result of the blows to the head he sustained, I am unable to reasonably conclude that the version of events depicting the use of excessive force by an officer is any more likely to be true than the officers’ account,” Martino stated in his report.

The case has now been closed.