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A defendant is charged with a criminal offence, such as a domestic assault, and released with bail conditions. The police allege that the defendant has breached those conditions; he is arrested and charged under s.145(3) of the Criminal Code. Most recently, the...
In 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Jordan completely changed the landscape of s.11(b) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms which holds that any person who is charged with an offence has the right to be tried within a reasonable time. The SCC set out a new...
On June 3, 2020, the Ontario Court of Appeal released a long-awaited judgment on the issue of the constitutionality of s.33.1 of the Criminal Code. If you listened to the media and some social media accounts, you would likely be thinking that this decision has...
As most people - within the criminal justice system or not - are aware, one of the cornerstones of our system is that an individual is presumed innocent unless their guilt has been established beyond a reasonable doubt. But what may be less clear for most people is,...
You are arrested (perhaps for an impaired driving charge) and in police custody, asking to speak to counsel of your choice. Police contact this lawyer who does not pick up the phone. Police then ask you if you wish to speak to duty counsel. Is there any problem with...
Genetic genealogy is a tool that has people uploading their DNA to databases so that they can find long lost relatives and make new connections. What has been making the news more recently is the fact that some public databases cooperate with law enforcement agencies...
When a individual is denied bail after a bail hearing or remains in custody waiting the outcome of their legal proceedings, are there any protections to ensure that this person does not languish in jail? Section 525 of the Criminal Code stipulates that when in...
Over the last few years, multiple mandatory minimum sentences have been challenged in courts across Canada. The federal government has also toyed with the idea of repealing a number of these sentences that came into force during the Conservative government. However,...
The Canadian Mental Health Association estimates that in a given year, 1 in 5 people in Canada will personally experience a mental health illness. From bipolar disorder to schizophrenia to depression or anxiety, the discussion surrounding mental health is becoming...
Last week, the Ontario of Appeal heard the appeal of the Christy Natsis case. You may recall the Natsis trial a few years ago: a Pembroke dentist who was charged with impaired driving and driving with over 80 milligrams of alcohol in her system. Ultimately, after 55...
