Baton use drops last year Report included fatal shooting continued from p. 1 2011 and 141 in 2010. In 2012, officers drewing and/or pointed their firearms in the presence of a member of the public 103 times (up from 80 times in 2011). An officer is permitted to do so if they have reasonable grounds to believe it is necessary to protect against loss of life or serious bodily harm. They can also discharge a weapon to call for assistance in a critical situation if there is no reasonable alternative and may open fire to destroy a dangerous animal or one that is injured and suffering. The report said a service firearm was discharged a total of 21 times during 2012 (down from 23 incidents in 2011). Two of these cases concerned officers involved in the fatal shooting of Kyle Newman on Jan. 12, 2012. An investigation by Ontario's Special Investigations Unit concluded the two officers acted in self-defence when they shot Newman, who went to 20 Division Police Station armed with a knife and charged at the officers. A Halton police investigation found that Newman had earlier fatally stabbed his estranged wife Katherine in her Treetop Terrace residence. The report said the other 19 firearm discharges for 2012 were required to destroy animals for humanitarian reasons. It is not clear if the coyote shot by police in Oakville and a black bear shot in Burlington, both during 2012, were included in this number. The use of hand-to-hand techniques by Halton police saw some change in 2012 with 25 soft empty hand techniques (i.e. joint locks, defensive blocking) reported. While this was a little higher than 2011's 22 instances, it is significantly lower than the 44 accounts reported in 2010 or the 50 recorded in 2009. The numbers were different for, what police describe as, hard empty hand techniques (i.e. kicking, punching) with 28 such reports in 2012 compared to 15 cases in 2011 and 19 in 2010. Of the `hard' techniques used, 86 per cent were considered successful in getting the suspect under control. The success rate for the `soft' techniques was lower at 64 per cent. The report found use of the expandable baton was lower in 2012 with four reports compared to 10 in 2011 and five in 2010. In those four incidents, the baton only succeeded in getting the suspect under control twice. According to the police, success rate for pepper spray use was considerably higher -- its use, they said, got the suspect under control in all 13 occurrences reported in 2012. Pepper spray use was up slightly -- reported to have been used 11 times in 2011, and nine in 2010. Taser use was also up in 2012 -- 49 reported instances. Of these occasions, three involved the Taser being used as a stun gun while 11 accounts actually involved its probes being fired at a suspect. In the other 35 occurrences, just pulling the Taser out was enough for an officer to get a suspect's co-operation, according to the report. Police said there were 35 use of force occurrences involving the Taser in 2011 and 40 accounts in 2010. Of 49 2012 usages, 44 succeeded in getting the suspect under control, stated the report. 7 | Friday, May 3, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Medical Office Building For Sale or Lease New Oakville Hospital Building Features: · Located at the Main Entrance of the New Oakville Hospital · Available for Sale or Lease · Prime Turn-Key Medical Suites · Covered Connection to the Hospital · Lounge/Conference Room for Physicians · 2 Storey Green Wall & Atrium · State of the Art LEED Certified Building Location: New Oakville Hospital Description: 5 Storey Class A Medical Office Building Building Size: 100,000 Sq. Ft. Occupancy: December 2015 Physician's Lounge Visit oakvillebeaver.com Sore Feet, Sports Injury, Painful Ingrown Toenails? Plantar Warts? We can help! Exceptional footcare for all ages. · Routine footcare · Corns & calluses · Plantar warts · Heel/arch/foot pain · Diabetic footcare and education · Thick or ingrown nails · Nail surgery · Sports related foot problems & injuries · Custom made orthotics · Sigvaris® compression stockings · Evenings and saturday appointments available · New patients welcome! J. Richard Werkman CHIROPODIST Over 50% Committed ACT NOW! Ben Swirsky 416.221.9348 x319 Lina Yang 416.221.9348 x325 Ross Cannata 905.338.3279 Visit our website, subscribe to our Blog or call for an appointment. Ample Free parking. located on the north/west corner of maple grove dr. and cornwall rd. 1495 Cornwall Rd., Suite 33, Oakville T: 905-845-4817 www.werkman.ca Leading Owner, Developer & Manager of Medical Buildings for over 30 years