A Toronto police officer accused of assaulting a young Black man is now charged with professional misconduct in connection with the 2015 incident, an altercation officers neglected to report to Ontario’s police watchdog until after the injured man lodged a complaint nearly a year later.

Const. Joseph Dropuljic faces one count of discreditable conduct under Ontario’s Police Service Act, stemming from a November 2015 altercation in North York that injured Kimani Wilson, then 23.

The officer made his first appearance before the Toronto police tribunal via video Thursday morning, seven months after the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the province’s civilian police watchdog, charged Dropuljic with assaulting Wilson.

Neither of the charges against Dropuljic has been proven in court or at the police tribunal.

According to a summary of professional misconduct allegations, detailed in a document called a notice of hearing, released Thursday, Dropuljic and fellow officers were called to investigate the sound of gunshots on Grace Field Dr., but did not find anything.

Soon after, Dropuljic arrived at North York’s Queens Dr., about 1.5 kilometres away from the location of the gunshots call, and “engaged” Wilson, according to the document. He arrested him for possession of a dangerous weapon, then, after conducting an investigation, released him with no charges, the tribunal documents say.

In September 2016, Wilson lodged a complaint with Ontario’s police complaint body, the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD).

“He claimed that he was subjected to police brutality and sustained injuries from his investigation and arrest,” according to the tribunal document.

It was only then — after the complaint was filed 10 months following the incident — that the Toronto police notified the SIU of Wilson’s injuries sustained during police encounter.

The watchdog then launched an investigation, resulting in the charge against Dropuljic in August 2017.

Ontario’s Police Act establishes a police service must notify the SIU “immediately” of any injury that would reasonably be considered serious and that was the result of a police interaction — including when someone is admitted to hospital.

At a news conference last year, Wilson told reporters that he was getting into a taxi, on his way to visit a friend, when Toronto officers dragged him out of the vehicle, kneed him in the back and beat him. He also alleged that he was illegally searched and groped. He claimed he lost consciousness at one point, then his mother called an ambulance and he was taken to hospital.

When asked last year about the officer’s conduct, and why the SIU was not immediately contacted about Wilson’s injuries, Toronto police chief Mark Saunders said he could not comment because the case was before the courts.

Dropuljic’s criminal charge was the second within a few weeks in August 2017 where it was revealed that Toronto police failed to contact the SIU regarding an interaction where a civilian incurred serious injuries.

Shortly before, the SIU laid assault charges against Toronto police Const. Michael Theriault and his brother, Christian Theriault, in the beating of Dafonte Miller, 19, in December 2016 in Whitby. Theriault had been off-duty at the time.

Durham Regional Police had been called to the scene and charged only Miller, who was seriously injured, but those charges were later withdrawn by the Crown. The SIU was not notified of Miller’s injuries, either by Durham police or Toronto police; the watchdog was only contacted six months later, by Miller’s lawyer.

The Theriaults’ case is still before the courts, and Waterloo Regional Police is currently conducting a review of Toronto police handling of the case.

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Dropuljic is due back in court later this month.

With files from Star archives

Wendy Gillis can be reached at wgillis@thestar.ca