Ontario launches police oversight review in wake of SIU report on Andrew Loku
'The time has come to look critically at how this system is working to serve the public interest'
An Ontario judge has been tapped to lead a review of the province's police oversight agencies — a move the provincial Liberal government announced as it partially released a report into the fatal police shooting of Andrew Loku.
Attorney General Madeleine Meilleur said in a statement Friday that Appeal Court Justice Michael Tulloch will lead an independent review of Ontario's three police oversight agencies — the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD) and the Ontario Civilian Police Commission.
He will also examine how SIU reports could be made public in the future, as well as whether past reports could be published.
The announcement came as the attorney general's office released the provincial police watchdog's report on its investigation into 45-year-old Loku's death.
"We are aware that there are concerns about transparency and accountability in the current police oversight system, and that the time has come to look critically at how this system is working to serve the public interest," the statement said.
Tulloch is expected to submit his recommendations in the coming months, the release added.
Normal SIU practice is to issue a news release summarizing a case, and not the full report, when an officer is either cleared or charged with an offence following incidents involving police where there has been death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault.
"I am confident that through this review process we will create a more transparent approach to police oversight that has the confidence of both the police and the public they serve," Meilleur said in the release.
With files from CBC