A B.C. civilian-led police watchdog organization has cleared the Vancouver Police Department of any wrongdoing when a woman became injured after falling several storeys during an attempt to arrest her.

The Independent Investigation Office of B.C. released a report today (May 10) about the incident which took place in January.

When officers went to a residence at 8:39 a.m. on January 22 to arrest an “affected person” of an investigation, but no one responded to their knocking on the door.

According to police reports, they heard the deadbolt lock and movement inside the suite.

The officers subsequently obtained a warrant, then returned around 11:20 a.m. and announced they were there to arrest the individual while knocking on the door.

At 11:24 a.m., a master key was used to enter the suite. After officers entered, they found the residence empty and a window open.

The police report states that one officer saw the individual outside the window on the ledge.

The officers located the female several floors below. The individual had fallen from the fourth-floor suite on to an awning, sustaining serious injuries and requiring surgery.

During an IIO interview with the individual, she said she became aware of police presence around 8:30 a.m. and didn't have any interactions with the officers, but didn’t want to be arrested.

She explained that she decided to climb out of the window to reach the floor below but slipped and fell.

The report concludes that although there was a “sufficient connection” between the police actions and the individual’s injuries to launch an investigation, it states that “officers were in the lawful exercise of their duty in attempting to arrest” the individual and that the officers acted “appropriately” by obtaining a warrant prior to entry to the suite.

Based on the evidence, the IIO won’t be recommending any charges to be considered against any officers.