No officer charges in gorge death

The police officer involved in a foot chase of a Niagara Falls teenager who jumped over a retaining wall and fell to his death into the Niagara Gorge will not be charged.

A news release from the Special Investigations unit states that director Ian Scott has concluded there are no reasonalbe grounds to charge suject officer Const. Jacob Smits with any criminal offence in relation to the death of 18-year-old Ryan Dube.

The SIU, an arms-length body that probes reports involving police in cases where there has been a death or serious injury, assigned seven investigators and two forensic investigators to probe the circumstances surroundign the incident. In all, four witness officers and 17 civillian witnesses were interviewed.

The release also notes Const. Smits did not participate in an SIU interview, nor did he provide investigators with a copy of his duty notes, as is his legal right.

The investigation looked into the events of the evening of July 24, and the news release provides a detailed accounting of what the investigators determined happened.

The investigators found that shortly after 5 p.m., Const. Smits was dispatched to check an address for Mr. Dube who was wanted on an outstanding warrant for breach of probation. This was in contrast to reports This Week received that the officer was responding to a disturbance call at Nightlight group home, where Dube was staying. Representatives from Boys and Girls Club of Niagara, which operates the group home, maintained there was no disturbance.

Const. Smits found Dube walking with a friend in the area of Ontario Avenue and Otter Street and told Dube about the warrant. Const. Smits went back to his cruiser to grab a pen and paper and to radio in that he had Dube in custody and that no other assistance was needed.

According to the investigation, Dube took this opportunity to run away, with Const. Smits in pursuit, first in his cruiser and then on foot. Dube ran across River Road, down an incline to a retaining wall separating the road from the Niagara Gorge.

The wall is between three to four feet high and made of stone. On the other side, the ground juts out about five feet on a decline, and then there is a big drop-off into the gorge.

When Dube reached the wall, he put his hands on top and propelled himself over. Const. Smits ran to the wall, hesitated for a brief moment and then also propelled himself over.

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No officer charges in gorge death