Parents of child bitten by Winnipeg police dog in school see surge of public support for independent probe

WARNING: This story contains an imagethat may be disturbing.

The parents of a boy bitten by a Winnipeg police dog during a school visit are demanding an independent investigation into what happened, and thousands have signed an online petition to support them.

Nearly 3,000 people have penned their names to Femi and Omolara Aloba's call for the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitobato probe how their five-year-old son Daniel was bitten and injured by the police dog during a Dec. 14 visit by the police canine unit to Samuel Burland School in South St. Vital.

The boy lost a tooth and required several stitches to his lip.

The couple started their online petition on Monday after learning the IIU was declining to investigate.

The IIU previously said after reviewing the incident, they determined it did not fall within the "serious injury classification," because the child was taken to hospital but not admitted.

• Parents heartbroken child's injuries by Winnipeg police dog not deemed serious enough for IIU to investigate

The investigator further said the decision could changeand an independent investigation could be launchedif there is enough public interest in the incident.

The family appears to be finding some, including from outside Winnipeg, with a Brandon University sociology professor speaking up Thursday in support of them.

"This is a horrible situation and I really feel for the parents and their child," Christopher Schneider said.

He said it was an "error in judgment" for the IIU to not investigate given there's evidence police dogs can be volatile and sometimescan't be controlled by their handlers.

In an interview with CBC, Schneider said there are documented incidents in Canada and the U.S. of police dogs biting schoolchildren. Police should have been aware of the danger the dogs can pose to kids, he said.

Schneider said an IIU probe would ensure the police are held accountable, that the family gets answers and also foster a chance to put "iron-clad" policy in place so that another child isn't bitten.

If the unit doesn't go ahead, then the public needs to hold school administrators accountable for why they allow the practice to continue, said Schneider.

Parents should be made aware of the risks so they can provide informed consent, he said. The Alobas have said no one told them in advance about the police dog visit.

"Why are school administrators allowing police to bring their K9s into classrooms?" Schneider asked.

Police previously said they were investigating the incident, and that the dog would be removed from active service until a review is completed. A spokesperson said this week there was no further information to provide about the dog's status as of last Friday.

Police representatives met with the boy's family the day he was bitten.

Lawsuit may net better results for family, veteran lawyer says

A local veteran criminal defence lawyer believes the IIU's decision was the correct one, despite the publicity the case has generated.

"Public interest, while it does create a wider evaluation process ... does not mean that every single time there's something that people think is worthy of looking atthat requires the IIU to investigate," Saul Simmonds said.

The unit only probes suspected criminal matters, he said.

• Investigation underway after Winnipeg police dog bites student at South St. Vital elementary school

Pursuing a civil court claim may be the more appropriate course of action for the family to take, Simmonds said.

"If the handler has his dog under complete control and nevertheless the dog snaps at someone, that doesn't demonstrate that the person concerned did something of any criminality," said Simmonds.

Manitoba Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen did not respond to a CBC query Thursday about whether he'd consider commissioning an independent investigation.

Parents of boy bit by Winnipeg police dog demand independent investigation

2 years ago

Duration 3:19

Femi and Omolara Aloba's are calling for the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba to probe how their five-year-old son was bitten and injured by a police dog at school.