CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION BOARD
Adjudicator: Jo-Anne Hughes
Indexed as: (Re) 1509-00620
ORDER
Introduction
1In this case, the Applicant claimed that while working as a Police Officer he was assaulted when he was arresting the Offender.
2In this case, the CICB is required to determine whether a crime of violence has occurred as per section 5(a) of the Act, what injury, if any, arose from it, and the relevant circumstances affecting whether or not compensation should be awarded and if so, the amount.
Incident
3In his July, 2015 submission to the CICB, the Applicant included a copy of his “will say” which he wrote to support his report of this incident for his employer. The Applicant wrote that while working for the [Name] Police Service, he was wearing a police uniform and at 1:02 a.m., he saw an altercation with 30+ people at the corner of [Streets] streets. During that incident, the Offender was combative, kicking and taking swings at the Applicant while the Applicant tried to arrest him. During the incident, the Applicant’s glasses were knocked from his head. Afterwards, the Applicant realized his right thumb and shoulder were becoming noticeably sore so he reported to his supervisor and went to the [Name] General Hospital for treatment.
Police Report
4The CICB received Court documents which showed that relative to the Applicant, the Offender was charged with assault peace officer and mischief (damage to Applicant’s glasses). Also, he was charged with causing a disturbance by fighting.
5On [date], 2015, the Offender pled and was found guilty of the assault police and causing a disturbance charges. He received a suspended sentence plus twelve months of probation. He was ordered to pay $200.00 in Victims Services Fees and $300.00 in restitution to the Applicant for the loss of his glasses.
Injuries
6The Applicant wrote that as a result of this incident, he had a torn ligament in his right thumb and a torn muscle in his right shoulder. He was in a cast for six weeks and he took physiotherapy for two months for his shoulder. The Applicant had purchased a hunting license for his vacation and as a result of these injuries he was unable to go which cost him $298.00 plus another $110.00 for another hunt. The Applicant wrote that his shoulder injury was not fully healed until March.
Medical Reports
7The CICB received a Report, dated [date], 2014, from Dr. [Name] at the [Name] General Orthopedic Unit which provided details of the assessment of the Applicant’s right thumb. X-rays revealed no fracture and the Doctor diagnosed that the Applicant had a “stressed ulnar collateral ligament” so he was put into a splint and advised to take only light duties at work until his re-assessment in four weeks’ time.
8On [date], 2014, the Doctor re-assessed the Applicant’s thumb and released him to full duties in a week’s time.
9The CICB received Reports from [Name] at the [Name] Physiotherapy Associates who provided treatment for the Applicant’s right shoulder. As of [date], 2014, the Applicant still had some pain with “end reaching” activity but he planned to return to full duties in [date] 2015.
Expenses
10In his submission to the CICB, the Applicant estimated that it would cost him $300.00 to replace his missing glasses.
11The CICB received copies of some Reports which were sent into the WSIB on behalf of the Applicant but the CICB received no report from the Applicant to indicate if he would be considered for a NEL award.
12The CICB received a pharmacy receipt for $23.72 on [date], 2014. However, there is no information on this receipt to note what the expense is for and how it may be related to the incident which is subject to this Order.
Analysis and Decision
13Section 11 of the Act states that proof of conviction shall be taken as conclusive evidence that the offence has been committed. The CICB finds that the Applicant is a victim within the meaning of section 5(b) of the Act as a result of a single incident of assault peace officer.
14In assessing compensation for pain and suffering, the CICB has considered the nature of this incident and how it affected the Applicant. In this case, the Applicant was injured while performing his lawful duties as a Police Officer. As a result, of this incident the Applicant suffered from a stressed ligament in his right thumb and a sore right shoulder. The Applicant had to wear a thumb splint for 6-8 weeks and he was unable to perform his regular duties at work for nearly two months. Also, the Applicant claimed that he had to miss two hunting trips as a result of his injuries.
15The Applicant’s claim was supported with reports from the [Name] Police Service, the [Name] General Hospital, a Doctor and a Physiotherapist. Considering this evidence and the submissions by the Applicant, the CICB assesses this award at $3,000.00.
16The CICB generally awards compensation only to cover expenses related to treatment of the injuries sustained (i.e. hospital, medication or therapy expenses) and not for expenses related to personal items/property/moving costs/financial debts. Having found no compelling reasons to deviate from its usual practice in this instance, the CICB declines to award compensation for the Applicant’s claims in respect to his unused hunting license fees and his lost/broken glasses.
17The CICB generally requires original receipts and/or other supporting documentation for any expenses that are claimed, both to verify the amount claimed and to confirm that such costs were not covered by other sources, such as private insurance. In the absence of such evidence, and having found no compelling reason to deviate from its usual practice in this instance, the CICB denies the pharmacy expense claim as described above for unspecified goods/services.
18Finally, since the status of a potential WSIB NEL award is unknown, the CICB wishes to alert the Applicant to the provisions in specified in the Act, that should the Applicant be awarded compensation as a result of a potential NEL award from the WSIB, the Applicant must notify the CICB immediately since the CICB is entitled to be reimbursed from those funds for any amount of compensation it has awarded to the Applicant, pursuant to section 26(5.1) which states:
The Board is entitled to be reimbursed, out of any amount recovered by the applicant from the offender or any other party, for the amount of compensation awarded to the applicant.
Award
19The CICB orders payment as follows:
Section 7(1)(d) Pain and Suffering $3,000.00
TOTAL AWARD $3,000.00
20The CICB recognizes that no amount of money can adequately compensate victims for the injustice they have suffered but also finds the amount of the award to be reasonable within the context of the Act.
PAYMENT
21THE CICB ORDERS that the following sums be paid forthwith to:
The Applicant $3,000.00
DATED at Toronto this 21st day of September, 2017.
Jo-Anne Hughes, Member