No charges against Essex County OPP after spike belt used on truck fleeing police: SIU

The SIU report says a silver Ford F250 was located oriented in an easternly direction on the south side of the roadway and over the south side fence. (Source: SIU)

The Director of the Special Investigations Unit has cleared Essex County OPP after a spike belt was used to stop a man fleeing police.

Joseph Martino says he has found no reasonable grounds to believe an OPP officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the serious injuries suffered by a 28-year-old man when he crashed his pickup truck into a ditch while fleeing police on Highway 3 in Essex County.

On Dec. 10, 2022, just before 1 a.m., a driver, while fleeing from the OPP, left the roadway on Highway 3 between Cameron Side Road and Marsh Road.

According to the OPP, Windsor Police requested the OPP’s assistance in locating two vehicles involved in ongoing criminal offences in the Windsor area. OPP members from the Essex Detachment located the involved vehicles and initiated a pursuit.

A Stringer Spike System tire deflation device (TDD) was deployed on one of the vehicles but was ineffective and the pursuit was terminated. After the vehicles were located again, police say one of the suspect vehicles purposefully collided with the OPP police vehicle, then fled the scene of a collision, which produced minor damage and no injuries.

At 1:30 a.m., a second TDD was deployed on the other involved suspect vehicle. When that driver attempted to avoid the spike belt, the vehicle left the roadway.

Upon impact in the ditch, at Highway 3 between Cameron Side Road and Marsh Side Road, Kingsville, the complainant was ejected from the vehicle. He was transported to hospital with neck and back injuries, and later diagnosed with a fractured nose and back.

“In the result, as there are no reasonable grounds to conclude that the SO (subject official), or any of the officers who had a role in the pursuit that preceded the Complainant’s motor vehicle collision, transgressed the limits of care prescribed by the criminal law, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case,” said Martino.

Three investigators, one forensic investigator and one collision reconstructionist were assigned to the case.