R. v. Christhurajah

R. v. Christhurajah

The Crown did not prove on a balance of probabilities that the Facebook account represented in Exhibit 1 was created by the accused; therefore the evidence was inadmissible and excluded.

Source-derived case information.

Citation
2017 BCSC 1355
Parties
Crown: Regina; Accused: Kunarobinson Christhurajah; Accused: Lesly Jana Emmanuel; Accused: Nadarajah Mahendran; Accused: Thampeernayagam Rajaratnam
Court
Supreme Court of British Columbia
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
3 January 2017
Procedural Posture
Criminal / Voir Dire (admissibility of Social Media Evidence)
Outcome
Crown's application to admit Facebook printouts (Exhibit 1) dismissed; evidence excluded.
Legal Topics
Authentication of Social Media Accounts, Admissibility of Computer Printouts, Admissions Against Interest, Voir Dire Procedure, Expert Evidence on Digital Authentication
Source Language
english
Criminal Law Evidence Internet and Social Media Evidence Identification Authentication of Social Media Accounts Admissibility of Computer Printouts Admissions Against Interest Voir Dire Procedure +1 more

Source-derived case record

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

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Parties

Regina

Crown

Kunarobinson Christhurajah

Accused

Lesly Jana Emmanuel

Accused

Nadarajah Mahendran

Accused

Thampeernayagam Rajaratnam

Accused

Procedural Posture

Criminal / Voir Dire (admissibility of Social Media Evidence)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Facebook account (Exhibit 1) was created by the accused
  2. 2 Whether Exhibit 1 is admissible as an admission against interest by the accused
  3. 3 Whether the Crown met the balance of probabilities threshold for authentication of the account

Ratio Decidendi

The Crown did not prove on a balance of probabilities that the Facebook account represented in Exhibit 1 was created by the accused; therefore the evidence was inadmissible and excluded.

Court Disposition

Crown's application to admit Facebook printouts (Exhibit 1) dismissed; evidence excluded.

Orders

  • Exhibit 1 (Facebook printouts) excluded from evidence
  • Testimony of Venita Costello insofar as it sought to authenticate Exhibit 1 excluded