CHATHAM, Ont. — Ontario’s police watchdog has charged an officer with involuntary manslaughter and negligence following the shooting death of a man last summer.
The Special Investigations Unit says officers from the provincial police’s Chatham-Kent detachment were following a vehicle believed to have been involved in the petrol theft on July 7.
The independent agency says the vehicle ended up in the ditch dividing the lanes of the 401 freeway.
As one of the officers approached the vehicle, the SIU says, “his firearm discharged” and he shot the driver.
The 24-year-old man died at the hospital.
Const. Sean O’Rourke was charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter and one count of criminal negligence causing the death, and is due in court next month.
© 2022 The Canadian Press
Reference-globalnews.ca