New details emerge in police-involved shooting at Innisfil, Ont. home

Four South Simcoe Police officers have been cleared of any wrongdoing following a police-involved shooting at an Innisfil residence in August that left one young man dead and another facing serious charges.

The Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) released new information in a report on Monday, four months after the fatal shooting.

On Aug. 15, officers were called to a dispute at a home on Shoreview Drive after a 911 caller advised two men attacked an unidentified man with a bat and plastic hockey stick and chased him down the street. Court documents indicate the attack was by two brothers on their father.

The two men then returned to the house and when officers arrived, both 19-year-olds were in an SUV, the report noted.

The SIU claims the two men allegedly accelerated toward an officer who fired at the vehicle in response.

The agency reports the officers told the two men to stop the vehicle several times to no avail.

The driver died in the vehicle of a single gunshot wound, stated the SIU. It alleges the passenger attempted to get into the driver’s seat and take off before the officers discharged their weapons once again.

The passenger suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was rushed to a trauma centre for treatment.

• Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device 
• Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox

In the report, the SIU stated the second set of shots fired by the officers was harder to reconcile, but noted that based on the evidence, their actions weren’t considered unjustified because they faced the “very real possibility” of being run over.

While the report didn’t disclose the identities of those involved, CTV News has learned the two men are twins, Dylan and Liam Hatton, who lived at the Shoreview Drive residence.

Ontario Provincial Police charged Dylan Hatton earlier this month with assault causing bodily harm, assault with a weapon, assaulting an officer with a weapon and dangerous operation of a vehicle.

His defence lawyer, Asha James, told CTV News on Monday the Hatton family is “devastated” by the SIU’s decision.

“If they had known how that day would end they would have never called police seeking help that day for both Dylan and Liam,” James said.

Hatton has since been released from custody with a court date scheduled for January in Bradford.

“The family is focused on Dylan’s criminal trial and making sure that he gets through that. They are still on their quest for accountability for what happened that day and they want transparency. They want the truth to come out about what took place that afternoon,” his lawyer added.

South Simcoe Police Service declined to comment on the SIU's findings.

The allegations against Hatton have not been tested in court.

The SIU is an independent government agency that investigates incidents involving police where death, serious injury, sexual assault or the discharge of a firearm has occurred.