Warning: This story contains details of suicidal ideation.
THUNDER BAY — A judge will need to determine if the force used by a Thunder Bay Police Service officer that left a 60-year-old man with facial injuries was reasonable, appropriate, and lawful.
Const. Ryan Dougherty appeared before Justice O’Marra in a Thunder Bay courtroom on Monday for the opening of his trial on the charge of assault causing bodily harm.
Dougherty pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The charge relates to an interaction between Dougherty and the 60-year-old complainant in November 2022.
Crown attorney Vlatko Karadzic outlined the evidence that will be presented throughout the trial, as well as an agreed statement of facts agreed upon with defence counsel Michael Hargadon.
According to Karadzic, officers with the Thunder Bay Police Service and the Mobile Crisis Response Team responded to a mental health call in November 2022.
A friend of the complainant called 911 after receiving messages from the complainant expressing intentions to commit suicide.
One of the first responding officers testified on Monday that the complainant was crying and appeared to be slightly intoxicated but described him as cooperative.
The officer tried to engage the complainant in deescalating conversation but then expressed concerns for his well-being.
The officers on the scene and the crisis response worker agreed based on the complainant’s behaviour that he should be transported to the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre for further assessment.
The complainant was detained under the Mental Health Act and transported to the hospital.
He became a little agitated when placed in handcuffs to be transported in the police cruiser, as per police policy, but he remained cooperative and polite with officers throughout the interaction captured on the body-worn cameras.
According to an agreed statement of facts, the complainant wandered away from the hospital that night after the initial responding officers were dismissed by hospital staff.
Dougherty, who was at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre on an unrelated matter, was asked by nursing staff to retrieve and return the complainant to the hospital.
The complainant was located on Oliver Road and when Dougherty attempted to apprehend him, a physical altercation took place. The complainant was detained and transported back to the hospital.
In body-worn camera footage from other officers who responded after the complainant was detained, Dougherty can be heard saying that the complainant tried to run from him and then started to fight.
Officers can also be heard expressing frustration that the complainant was able to walk out of the hospital through the ambulance bay doors despite his suicidal ideation at the time.
The complainant returned to the hospital two days later and was diagnosed with a fractured nose. It was admitted in the agreed statement of facts that the injury was caused by Dougherty during the detainment.
The Special Investigations Unit was contacted about the incident and launched an investigation. In April 2023, the SIU director determined there were reasonable grounds to charge Dougherty with assault causing bodily harm.
The trial is scheduled for five days. The complainant is expected to testify on Tuesday.
