SIU looking for witnesses in Pelham police officer shooting
Agency reported 2 officers had an altercation which led to Const. Parker being shot at least 5 times
PELHAM — Twelve police officers have been designated as witness officers in Thursday’s shooting between two Niagara regional police officers.
The Special Investigations Unit is probing the shooting that took place shortly after noon in a rural area in Pelham, north of the town of Fonthill.
While the provincial agency has released no names, multiple sources have told the Welland Tribune the two officers involved were Const. Nathan Parker and Det. Sgt. Shane Donovan of the traffic collision reconstruction unit.
The collision reconstruction unit was in the area investigating a collision that had occurred more than a week ago.
The SIU reported the two had some sort of altercation and Donovan al-
legedly shot Parker at least five times with his service weapon. Parker was taken to Hamilton General Hospital with serious injuries. Parker was in stable condition Friday, the SIU said.
“At this time, one subject officer has been designated. The officer who was struck, as well as 12 other officers, have been designated as witness officers,” the SIU said. “As per the unit’s policy, the identities of police officers who have been designated cannot be disclosed during the course of an SIU investigation.”
The SIU is a provincial agency that probes incidents involving police in which a civilian is seriously injured or killed.
The vacuum of official information about the incident — including the lack of information about the whereabouts of the officer who allegedly fired his gun, and whether he still had his weapon — has prompted concern from critics who say the public deserves more information.
“All the public’s aware of is one officer shot the other — even though they didn’t say that, which is really dumbfounding,” Howard Morton, a lawyer and former director of the SIU, said in an interview Friday in reference to the SIU’s first statement, which said “a firearm was discharged and one of the officers was struck.
“The public’s entitled to know, in light of that, are these officers still armed?”
SIU spokesperson Monica Hudon told the Toronto Star Friday the SIU “collected firearms from the officer who discharged his firearm and from the officer who was injured.”
Asked for more information about the circumstances of the shooting, which took place at a rural crossroads in Pelham, including whether it was possible the injured officer had drawn his weapon, Hudon said, “determining what transpired will be part of the SIU’s investigation.”
Addressing criticism that the SIU was not providing sufficient information, Hudon said that through the initial and updated news release, and a news conference on scene, the watchdog “provided whatever information it was able.”
“The SIU’s investigation is in the preliminary stages. In order to understand the nature of the altercation between the two police officers, investigators are speaking with witnesses and having the evidence that was collected analyzed. It will take time to get a complete picture of exactly what transpired.”
She added it was important the SIU not release information prematurely that could, for example, taint the memories of any witnesses.
Morton agrees, saying it would not be prudent for the SIU to release too much information at this stage that might compromise the probe, “but at the same time, there are always things that do not jeopardize that I think the public are entitled to know now, particularly when it involves somebody maybe out there with a gun who’s just shot somebody.”
Niagara Regional Police Service did not respond to questions sent by the Toronto Star via email or telephone Friday, including about the employment status of the officer who allegedly fired his gun. In a video released by Chief Bryan MacCulloch Friday, he states the service can’t provide any information because the SIU has invoked its mandate.
Typically, police officers under investigation by the SIU are suspended with pay, under the requirements of Ontario’s Police Services Act.
Any time a fellow member is seriously injured, it weighs heavily on colleagues, says Cliff Priest, president of the Niagara Regional Police Association.
“It could be me,” Priest said Friday morning in describing the sentiment.
He declined to go into details about the wounded officer.
“All I can tell you is that whenever an officer is seriously injured in any shape, form or fashion, whether hit by a vehicle, stabbed, shot or blown up it has an adverse effect on all of our people.”
Priest said police have an inherently dangerous job day in, day out, never knowing what they are responding to.
In 2015, Const. Neil Ridley was shot while on a call in Pelham, about 10 kilometres away from Thursday’s scene.
That same year, Const. Philip Sheldon was burned in an explosion after he and partner Dale Culley responded to a domestic disturbance call at a Vineland home.
“Our families are always wondering if we are coming home. It creates stress … and has a huge impact on family members,” Priest said.
While incidents such as Thursday’s create stress across the service, Priest said members — all 1,050 sworn officers and civilian members — band together and help the families of those who were injured or involved in some sort of incident. The police service and the police association alike have support systems to help officers and their families deal with stressful situations.
“We have professionals that will engage with officers and we have peer-to-peer counselling,” Priest said.
Those services also apply to family members because police officers take home much of what they see on the street — things the general public will never see — and that affects their families, he noted.
Since Thursday’s shooting, Priest said, the association has been in contact with all of its members, reaching out to see if they need any assistance.
“Our members will carry on, providing policing and protecting the community. Everyone should be grateful we have a bunch of professional men and women who are prepared to risk their lives.”