A Peel Regional Police officer was justified in using force while arresting a man at a Brampton shopping mall, according to the Special Investigations Unit, which has concluded there are no grounds for criminal charges.

The SIU investigated the May 2 incident at Bramalea City Centre after a 41-year-old man was injured during his arrest and later diagnosed with a concussion.

In a report released Aug. 28, SIU Director Joseph Martino concluded there were no reasonable grounds to believe the officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the man’s arrest or injury.

The investigation began after the man contacted the SIU and alleged that a Peel officer had used his knee to force his head into the ground during the arrest.

According to the SIU, Peel officers had been called to the second-floor food court at Bramalea City Centre after a report that one of a group of youths had displayed what appeared to be a handgun in a threatening manner.

Police located four youths sitting at a table and took them into custody.

While officers were dealing with the youths, the 41-year-old man approached them and told them not to speak to police and to call a lawyer.

Mall security directed the man to leave, but he remained and argued with the security guards.

Near the Burger King restaurant, three security guards moved to arrest him for trespassing. The SIU report says the man resisted and was taken to the ground.

Peel officers who had been involved in the earlier weapons investigation then intervened to assist the security guards.

The SIU reviewed police communications, officers’ notes, multiple body-worn camera recordings, cellphone video, mall surveillance footage and medical records.

The video showed the man on the ground while security guards attempted to restrain him. Officers then tried to gain control of his arms, which the SIU said he was refusing to surrender.

The officer under investigation was positioned near the man’s head. The officer’s right knee made contact with the left side of the man’s head before the officer repositioned his leg and knee over the man’s upper body.

The man complained that he could not breathe, and the officer removed his leg and stood up. Shortly afterward, the man’s hands were handcuffed behind his back.

He was taken to the mall security office, issued a trespass notice and released. He later went to Peel Memorial Hospital, where he was diagnosed with a concussion.

The SIU found that the man had failed to leave the mall after being directed to do so by security.

Under Ontario’s Trespass to Property Act, a police officer, property occupier or authorized person can arrest someone without a warrant when there are reasonable and probable grounds to believe the person is trespassing.

The SIU determined that the man was therefore subject to arrest and that he resisted when security guards attempted to take him into custody.

Martino found the force used by the officer was reasonable in the circumstances.

Although the officer’s knee made contact with the man’s head, the SIU said the contact was a glancing blow with minimal force behind it. The investigation found no evidence that the officer applied excessive pressure to the man’s head or upper back.

The SIU also noted that the officer removed his leg as soon as the man said he could not breathe.

“At no point was the Complainant punched or kicked,” Martino wrote.

The director concluded that the officer was authorized to assist with the arrest and that the force used was reasonably necessary to complete it.

“For the foregoing reasons, there is no basis for proceeding with criminal charges in this case,” Martino concluded.

The SIU file is now closed.

The officer declined to be interviewed by the SIU or provide notes, which the report notes is the officer’s legal right under the Special Investigations Unit Act.

Three other Peel officers who were considered witness officials were interviewed and provided their notes to investigators.

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