A Woodstock police officer pleaded guilty to an assault charge Thursday – and already knows he won’t face jail time.
Article content
Det. Const. Eric Dopf, 47, an 18-year veteran of the service, appeared briefly in the Ontario Court of Justice in London, where he entered a guilty plea and had his case adjourned to prepare a pre-sentence report.
Article content
None of the facts of the case were read into the court record. A three-page agreed statement of facts was filed with Justice Craig Sigurdson.
The date of the offense was Oct. 17, 2022. When Dopf was charged, Woodstock police said they launched an investigation after a complaint about an officer during an alleged on-duty incident. London police helped in the probe.
Dopf has no criminal record.
Dopf’s lawyer, Lucas O’Hara, told Sigurdson both sides have signaled their sentencing positions. The Crown will ask for a suspended sentence and probation, while the defense will seek a conditional discharge and probation.
Four hours of court time is expected to be set aside for the sentencing hearing. The case returns to court Feb. 7 to set a date for that hearing.
With both sides seeking a non-custodial sentence, Sigurdson suggested he was prepared to conduct the sentencing hearing by teleconference.
Share this article in your social network