Published On: Jul 04,2019
In Regina v. Espinoza-Ortega, 2019 ONCA 545, the Ontario Court of Appeal set aside the accused’s conviction and sentence for impaired driving causing bodily harm and related charges and ordered a new trial. The accused entered a guilty plea and presented a joint submission for a sentence of 45 days, three years’ Read More »
Published On: Jul 03,2019
The admissibility of prior sexual history under Section 276 of the Criminal Code of Canadahas recently been the subject of heated debate among members of the legal profession. The Supreme Court of Canadaconsidered this issue in Reginav. Goldfinch, 2019 SCC 38. The relevant Read More »
Published On: Jun 29,2019
In Regina v. Fougere, 2019 ONCA 505, the Ontario Court of Appeal set aside a conviction and ordered a new trial for aggravated assault where the Crown erroneously told the jury that self-defence could not apply if the accused struck the complainant first.
The accused Read More »
Published On: Jun 18,2019
In Regina v. Martel, 2019 QCCQ 2883, the Cour du Québec held that s.718.3(7) of the Criminal Code violates the s.12 Charter right against cruel and unusual punishment. This provision requires that sentences be imposed consecutively where the accused is convicted of sexual offences against more than one child, or where the Read More »
Published On: Jun 14,2019
In Regina v. Bao, 2019 ONCA 458, the Court of Appeal overturn a conviction, for possession of marijuana for the purposes of trafficking, based on frail identification evidence, namely a “fleeting glance.” While the officer was well intentioned, there were deficiencies in his evidence. The salient facts Read More »
Published On: Jun 12,2019
In a recent decision, the Supreme Court of Canada has held that an accused person has the right to have a trial in French. In Bessette v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 2019 SCC 31, the Court held that while both the British Columbia Offence Act and the Motor Vehicle Read More »
Published On: Jun 11,2019
The Court set aside a stay of proceedings imposed due to systemic breaches in Alberta of accused persons’ right to be taken before a justice as soon as practicable (to a maximum of 24 hours). The Crown conceded that the respondent’s s. 7, 9, and Read More »
Published On: Jun 10,2019
The top court in Canada, recently found that section 9 of the Charter was violated when the police had entered a fenced backyard area for the purposes of questioning and “carding” five (5) racialized men without the requisite grounds for so doing. In broad strokes, s. Read More »
Published On: Jun 09,2019
In Regina v. Barton, 2019 SCC 33, a majority of the Supreme Court of Canada (4:3) allowed the accused’s appeal, in part, from a decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal and ordered a new trial on a charge of unlawful act manslaughter in connection with the 2011 Read More »
Published On: May 21,2019
In Regina v. C.B, 2019 ONCA 370, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled on the issue of authenticating text messages for evidentiary purposes at trial, when the prospect of tampering is raised an issue. Plainly put, the Court ruled that the Courts should infer that the Read More »