The Special Investigations Unit (SIU, or "the Unit"; , UES) is the civilian police oversight agency of the province of Ontario, Canada. The SIU is responsible for investigating circumstances involving police that have resulted in a death or serious injury, or if a firearm was discharged at a person. The unit also investigates allegations of sexual assault. The unit's goal is to ensure that criminal law is applied appropriately to police conduct, as determined through independent investigations, increasing public confidence in the police services. The director is responsible to the attorney general of Ontario, and the unit as an "arm's-length" agency of the Ministry of the Attorney General. The current director is Joseph Martino; he initially served in an acting capacity from April 2019 prior to his formal appointment in November 2019. Overview As a provincial civilian law enforcement agency, the SIU has the power and authority to investigate police officers regulated by the Special Investigations Unit Act and charge them with criminal offences. The SIU oversees 47 police services and upwards of 23,000 police officers from municipal, regional, and provincial services. However, the SIU does not have the authority to investigate First Nations constables, or federal police officers such as those employed by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) or Canadian Forces Military Police. Ontario is the first province to have such a civilian oversight agency in place, and one of the few jurisdictions worldwide with an independent civilian agency. (In 2007 Alberta created the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, and in September, 2012, the Independent Investigations Office was established in British Columbia). As a result, the SIU has become a model of civilian oversight for other jurisdictions in the light of the international movement towards greater civilian accountability of the police. After more than 30 years of operating under the Police Services Act, the SIU is now regulated by the Special Investigations Unit Act which came into force on December 1, 2020. The legislation serves to strengthen civilian oversight of law enforcement and increase transparency. The SIU are completely independent of the police and have an arms-length relationship with the government. This means that although the SIU director reports to the provincial attorney general, the decision-making on cases and their day-to-day activities are independent of the government. History Before the SIU, police services investigated themselves or in some instances, another police service was assigned to conduct the investigation.