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SIU clears OPP following probe of death-by-suicide in Lake Dalrymple

Incident happened last September; 'It is clear that the (man) took his own life and that no police officer committed a criminal offence'
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Image from OPP

The province’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has concluded its investigation into the death-by-suicide of a 35-year-old man last fall at Lake Dalrymple.

“The evidence establishes that the OPP responded swiftly and took reasonable steps to locate the (man) and attempt to prevent his suicide,” said a report issued yesterday by Tony Loparco, the director of the SIU. “No charges will (be) issued and the file will be closed.”

The OPP from Kawartha Lakes responded to a 911 call regarding a suicide attempt just after noon on Sept. 2, 2018.

A man went to his ex-girlfriend’s home at Dalrymple that day and attempted to hang himself in front of her, “but the rope broke and he ran into the bush with more rope,” said the report.

A neighbour called the OPP and used his all-terrain vehicle to try to track down the man, but was unable to do so because of how dense the bush was.

The OPP attempted to locate the man by “pinging” his telephone and using a police dog.

The police dog tracked the man for almost an hour before he was discovered hanging in a tree. The OPP officers cut him down and attempted to revive him by performing CPR until paramedics arrived; however, they were unsuccessful.

At 4:57 on Sept. 2, the OPP notified the SIU of the suicide, triggering the investigation.

The OPP interviewed the man’s ex-girlfriend and provided the SIU with her statement. The SIU also reviewed text messages the ex-girlfriend received and interviewed some of the officers involved.

“After considering this evidence, it is clear that the (man) took his own life and that no police officer committed a criminal offence in connection with (his) death,” concluded the report.

There were some issues, however, with the officers’ efforts. The SIU discovered that the co-ordinates from the first two pings were misinterpreted.

“While this was unfortunate, there is no evidence that the data was misinterpreted due to the negligence of the officers and, even if it were, I am unable to find a marked and substantial departure from the requisite standard of care,” said the SIU’s report.

In addition, after the ex-girlfriend received a text from the man saying he “just wanted to say goodbye,” one of the officers decided to continue using the tracking dog rather than flood the area with officers to aid the search.

Eventually, the police dog led officers to the water’s edge “where a grey sweater, presumably belonging to the (man), was found near a black box containing a gold, engagement-style ring.

The police dog then tracked south along the water and back into an area with dense brush.”

That is when officers found the man.

“I am … unable to find that (the officer’s) decision to use the police dog rather than flood the area with officers was a departure of the conduct of a reasonable person,” wrote Loparco. “The officer was cognizant that the (man) was in dire need of help and reasonably made the tough decision to continue the search with the police dog.

“Even with the benefit of hindsight, it is impossible to determine if this decision delayed finding the (man) or somehow contributed to his death and I am satisfied that it was a reasonable approach given that the OPP were trying to locate a person in a densely forested area.”

The full SIU report is available online.


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Dave Dawson

About the Author: Dave Dawson

Dave Dawson is community editor of OrilliaMatters.com
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