Police involved in baby’s death not interviewed

Case in ‘hold pattern’ six months after watchdog confirmed OPP gunfire killed man and toddler

Six months after the provincial police watchdog confirmed a baby boy and his father were fatally shot by the Ontario Provincial Police, the officers who opened fire have not been interviewed and the investigation is “in a hold pattern” awaiting results of ballistic testing by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

In a “rare” move in one of its highestprofile recent cases, Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has tapped the FBI to perform forensic ballistics testing, a specialty of the U.S. agency, according to SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette.

The SIU’s update is the first since February, when the watchdog confirmed an 18-month-old baby was fatally shot by the OPP following an alleged child abduction on Nov. 26, 2020, in Kawartha Lakes.

Friday’s brief news release came one day after the Star inquired about the status of the investigation and asked why there had been no public update in six months.

In an email, Denette said the SIU is “unable to say when the investigation might come to a conclusion.”

“The SIU recognizes the high public interest in this tragic case and is moving as quickly as it can to bring the investigation to resolution. We ask for the public’s continued patience as the investigation is conducted,” the SIU said in the statement Friday.

Eighteen-month-old Jameson Shapiro’s died after the OPP opened fire on his father’s truck on a rural road in Kawartha Lakes (the SIU has not released the boy’s identity, but it was independently confirmed by the Star). The boy’s 33-year-old father later died in hospital as a result of the shooting.

According to the SIU, OPP officers were summoned to a call at 8:45 a.m. about a father abducting his son from the Municipality of Trent Lakes, near Bobcaygeon.

Shortly after, three officers opened fire at the father’s vehicle after it crashed into an OPP cruiser and another vehicle, seriously injuring an OPP officer who was attempting to put out a spike belt.

Denette confirmed Friday that none of the three officers at the centre of the probe have been interviewed by the SIU. Like all Canadians, police officers have a charter right to remain silent facing criminal investigation, though in the context of fatal police use of force that guarantee is controversial.

Nineteen witness officers and 14 civilian witnesses have been interviewed so far, Denette said.

For weeks after the baby’s death, there was speculation about exactly how the boy had died.

Shortly after the shooting, SIU investigators revealed that they’d found a handgun inside the father’s truck, a piece of evidence that left open the possibility the boy had been shot dead before police opened fire.

The SIU later stated that forensic evidence, including trajectory and bloodstain analysis, determined the baby was shot by police.

Acknowledging there was “public interest in this tragic case,” the SIU initially provided regular updates on the status of the investigation, including details about evidence collected on scene and the date of the child’s post-mortem.

The practice of frequent updates on SIU investigations was recommended by Ontario Court of Appeal Justice Michael Tulloch in his omnibus review of police oversight in 2016.

Howard Morton, a Toronto lawyer and former director of the SIU said there may well be reasons why this probe could be taking many months, but said there’s a risk that the public will lose trust in the process if they are kept in the dark.

That’s true, too, if members of the public don’t understand what is taking so long, Morton said.

“Of course, any delay causes a distrust, and it becomes compounded — rightly or wrongly — when they reach the decision that there are no charges here,” Morton said.

On Dec. 1, 2020, a new SIU Act came into effect requiring that the SIU complete investigations within 120 days — roughly four months — or provide public notice that the probe is continuing.

After 120 days, the watchdog “shall make a public statement respecting the status of the investigation every 30 days,” according to the legislation.

The reporting requirements don’t apply to the Kawartha Lakes shooting, however, because it happened on Nov. 26, 2020 — just days before the new law came into effect.

None of the three officers at the centre of the probe have been interviewed by the SIU. Like all Canadians, police officers have a charter right to remain silent facing criminal investigation