The Victoria Police Department is under investigation by B.C.’s police watchdog for a second time this month.
The Independent Investigations Office is looking into a collision between a VicPD cruiser and a motorcycle that left a 38-year-old woman in serious condition.
Around 8:30 p.m. on May 5, a VicPD cruiser was travelling eastbound on Chatham Street through the Government Street intersection when a motorcyclist was struck and injured.
At the time, VicPD said initial witness accounts stated the police cruiser was travelling on a green light and the IIO would not be investigating.
But on June 18, IIO investigators “reassessed the statements provided by witnesses and determined that the actions of an officer may have contributed to the collision. Based on this reassessment, the IIO asserted jurisdiction and will conduct an investigation,” according to a release.
VicPD is already involved in an IIO investigation that stemmed from a June 16 fatal crash.
In that case, Victoria resident Darcy David Cole fled from a VicPD cruiser and crashed his car into a lamppost at Blanshard Street and Cloverdale Avenue in Saanich.
The IIO is mandated to conduct investigations into police-related incidents of death or serious harm in order to determine whether or not an officer may have committed an offence.
dpalmer@vicnews.com
