No charges for officer

No charges will be laid against a Durham Regional Police officer who shot and killed a man in Port Perry in January, the Special Investigations Unit announced Monday. The man, 59, was reportedly armed with a knife and suicidal on Jan. 16, and police were told he had a woman trapped in a home. A police officer arrived and was told by another woman that the man was dangerous. He could hear another woman screaming from the home’s porch. As the officer walked up the driveway, he encountered man with a knife coming towards him in the darkness. The man pressed the blade of his knife against his own chest and refused to drop it when ordered. The officer backed up when the man advanced on him, saying “shoot me” and “kill me.” When he was a few metres away, the officer fired twice, hitting the man once. The officer then carried out first aid until paramedics arrived, but the man was pronounced dead at Lakeridge Health in Port Perry. The SIU spoke to five witness officer and five civilians before concluding there were no grounds for charges against the officer. Five investigators and three forensic investigators worked on the case. The officer took part in an interview but did not turn over his duty notes, which the SIU notes is his legal right.