Durham police to review handling of Dafonte Miller case

The deputy chief of the Durham Regional Police Service will review the force's handling of the Dafonte Miller case amid ongoing questions about why it took so long for the province's Special Investigations Unit to be informed of the teen's alleged beating for which a Toronto police officer is now charged.

DRPS Chief Paul Martin told CBC Toronto Friday that he has asked his deputy, Uday Jaswal, to launch an investigation into how his force handled the case.

Jaswal will "take a look at our investigation: was there anything we did or didn't do that we should have done," Martin told CBC Toronto anchor Dwight Drummond in an interview.

Jaswal's probe will also look at the force's policies and procedures when it comes to its responsibilities for referring a case to the SIU.

"If there's something that we can do that doesn't offend the legislation but is over and above what the legislation requires, then we can do that and use this particular incident as the backdrop to that," Martin said.

Toronto force should have notified SIU, Martin says

Miller was allegedly chased down a street and hit repeatedly with a steel pipe by two men in Whitby on Dec. 28, 2016. He suffered a broken nose, jaw and wrist and is awaiting surgery to remove an eye injured in the incident.

Michael Theriault, a Toronto officer who was off-duty at the time of the incident, has been charged with aggravated assault, assault with a weapon and public mischief in connection with the case.

The SIU has also charged Theriault's brother Christian Theriault, who is not a police officer, with the same offences.

Earlier Friday, Martin said that it was up to Toronto police to notify the SIU that an off-duty officer was allegedly involved in the incident.

In a statement issued Friday morning, Martin said that when his investigators became aware that Theriault was an off-duty Toronto officer, they informed the Toronto Police Service, which he said was then responsible for notifying the SIU.

Martin said he wanted to share his force's "perspective" on the incident and the many questions that it has raised, particularly about why it took four months from the date of the incident for the SIU to be notified. A lawyer for the family brought the incident to the attention of the SIU in late April.

Meaghan Gray, a spokesperson for Toronto police, confirmed Friday that the force's SIU liaison officer was notified of the incident on Dec. 28, 2016, the same day the incident occurred. The liaison officer determined the incident did not meet the SIU's mandate at that time, she confirmed.

The provincial body investigates incidents involving police that result in injury or death, or include allegations of sexual assault.

According to Martin's statement, Durham officers were called to an incident in the early morning hours of Dec. 28, "in which a young man was injured."

The young man, Dafonte Miller, was given medical assistance and officers "interviewed multiple people, evidence was collected and photographs were taken as part of our investigation."

The 19-year-old was then charged, Martin noted. Those charges were later dropped.

"During our investigation, when we became aware of the involvement of an off-duty Toronto Police officer, we contacted that service to share the information that we had at the time," Martin said. "Under the legislation, it is the responsibility of the police service who employs the officer to make the determination about contacting the SIU."

Former directors of the SIU have told CBC Toronto that as soon as it becomes clear that an officer is involved in such a situation, the SIU must be notified.

Martin goes on to say that he would like to say more, but is prevented from doing so due to the SIU investigation and the fact that the case is before the courts. He said the force will co-operate with both the SIU and the Waterloo Regional Police, which has been tasked with leading an independent investigation into how police handled this case.

"The seriousness of the injuries to this young man are tragic and we respect the impact this incident has had not only on his life, but with his family as well," Martin said. "We want our community to know that the safety and protection of every citizen is our top priority. We will continue to update the public and community leaders when we are legally permitted to do so."

Independent probe launched

On Thursday, Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders announced that members of the Waterloo service will oversee the internal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The internal probe — known as a "Section 11" investigation — is mandatory, Saunders said, but the involvement of another police force is not.

"With the conclusion of the [Special Investigations Unit] investigation, normally, I would conduct a Section 11 investigation. However, in light the circumstances now before me, I have taken the extra step of reaching out to an independent agency to complete the Section 11 investigation," Saunders read from a prepared statement at a Toronto Police Services Board meeting on Thursday afternoon.

Saunders told the board that Waterloo officers will look into the "procedures, policies, governance and conduct" of Toronto police as they relate to the alleged assault of Miller.

Meanwhile, the Theriault brothers were in court Friday dealing with issues related to their bail.