The province’s police watchdog has recommended charges against a BC Highway Patrol officer who rammed civilians in Okanagan Falls in 2022.
The officer was dealing with an unrelated incident when they struck a civilian pickup truck at the intersection of Maple Street and 10th Avenue at 7 p.m. on July 10, 2022.
Both the pickup driver and passenger were injured in the collision and were taken to hospital for treatment. One of them was described as having suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
Following the crash, the Independent Investigative Office (IIO) launched an investigation and completed it on Tuesday, April 18.
The IIO’s chief civilian officer, Ronald J. MacDonald, an attorney for King, found that there were reasonable grounds to believe the officer may have violated driving regulations.
The report and evidence have been forwarded to the B.C. Attorney’s Office to decide whether to formally press charges.
In order to approve any charges, the BC Prosecutor’s Office must be satisfied that based on the evidence gathered by the IIO there is a high probability of conviction and that prosecution is warranted in the public interest.
While the matter is linked to Crown, IIO would not make any other comment on the facts of the case.
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B.C. Office of Independent Investigations