Nova Scotia’s independent Serious Incident Response Team launched an investigation after the unidentified girl was seriously, but not fatally, injured May 9 in Oromocto. He escaped from a provincially funded group home and climbed over the railing of a freeway overpass around 10pm that night. The officer approached her and when she let go of the railing, he grabbed her by the wrist, the report said. He couldn’t hold on and she fell. The report found there was no criminality in the unnamed officer’s actions and grabbing her wrist straightened her fall and she landed on her feet instead of her back. “THE [officer’s] The actions are to be commended under the circumstances and absolutely nothing criminal in nature occurred that night,” the report said. “Therefore, there are no grounds for any charges.”
Child ‘managed to escape’ 24/7 surveillance
The child was a temporary ward of the province, living in a supervised residence operated by a private company and funded by the government, the report said. She was monitored by three people around the clock “because of the flight and the risk of suicide”. Around 10 p.m. he “managed to escape without warning,” the report said. The report is based on the testimony of two people, who were both driving nearby that night. One witness happened to be an off-duty team supervisor at home. The first witness saw the girl running down Waasis Street and onto an overpass that crosses the Trans-Canada Highway in Oromocto West, the report said. This witness saw her climb over the railing and stand on the ledge overlooking the railing and hold on with both hands. The second witness, the off-duty supervisor, called 911, the report said. Within minutes, the three staff members from the house and the officer in question reached the overpass separately. The report said the officer had previously interacted with the child during other encounters with the RCMP. He was “well known to [child] and had established a positive relationship with her,” the report said. When the officer reached the overpass, he began to slowly approach and try to chase her off the ledge. Another officer arrived and told SIRT that the officer in question was trying to comfort the child and “at the same time approached” her. The child told the officer that he did not want the three staff members to come any closer and “there was nothing [officer] could do to stop her,” the report said. As the officer approached, she let go and began to fall back, and the officer lunged forward and grabbed her left wrist. The report said the officer was unable to stop her from slipping and fell 17 feet (about five meters) to the ground. Hospital staff told the officer that the child, identified in the report as AP, had broken her right leg, right wrist, some ribs and her jaw, the report said. However, her social worker told SIRT that the child would give evidence. “The SiRT investigator was unable to obtain accurate verification of AP’s injuries as efforts to obtain such information were not forthcoming,” the report said. The investigation was completed on July 27. RCMP spokesman Hans Oullette said no internal investigation was conducted following the incident, but the RCMP requested the review by SIRT due to the “seriousness” of the situation. According to Statistics Canada, after accidents, suicide has been the second leading cause of death for people aged 14 to 24 since at least 2000. If you need help: CHIMO Helpline: 1-800-667-5005 / http://www.chimohelpline.ca Children’s Helpline: 1-800-668-6868 Suicide Prevention Service Canada: 1-833-456-4566.
