SIU clears Hamilton police officer of wrongdoing in violent arrest of man last October

Ontario’s police watchdog says a Hamilton police officer has been cleared of any wrongdoing in connection with a 49-year old man suffering a broken orbital bone during his arrest last October.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) was contacted after a 49-year-old man reported that he had been assaulted by Hamilton police officers during his arrest on Oct. 22, 2023.

SIU Director Joseph Martino says in his report that police were alerted to the possibility of an impaired driver in Hamilton in the area of Main Street East and Strathearne Avenue.

A 911 caller had reported a pickup truck driving erratically, striking another vehicle before continuing again.

Police located the driver and when trying to arrest him, he struggled against officers’ attempts to put on handcuffs.

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Martino says officers had to make use of physical force to restrain the complainant, with one officer reportedly punching him five times in the head before a conducted energy weapon was used to subdue him.

The complainant was taken from the scene to hospital where he was found to have suffered a broken orbital bone.

Martino says the Hamilton police officers involved did not exceed what was legally justified in the circumstances.

“It is apparent in the video footage of the arrest that the Complainant presented as a formidable opponent. Despite five officers on him, he put up a protracted and vigorous struggle,” Martino says in the report.