R. v. Mitchell

R. v. Mitchell

The court found material inaccuracies, omissions and unreliable descriptions in the ITO (location of officers, terrain, odour source attribution, and overstated FLIR results) which, even after amplification, left no reliable grounds to support the warrant; the warrant was invalid, the resulting search unreasonable, and pursuant to the Grant s.24(2) analysis the evidence was excluded, leading to acquittal.

Citation
2010 BCSC 1228
Parties
Crown: Regina; Accused: Hugo Kester Mitchell
Court
Supreme Court of British Columbia
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
16 June 2010
Procedural Posture
Criminal / Voir Dire and Trial (acquitted)
Outcome
Warrant invalidated; seized evidence excluded; accused acquitted.
Legal Topics
Warrant Validity, Information to Obtain (ito), Exclusion Under S.24(2) of the Charter, Thermal Imaging (flir) Evidence, Odour Evidence
Source Language
English
Criminal Law Search and Seizure Constitutional Law Evidence Controlled Drugs Warrant Validity Information to Obtain (ito) Exclusion Under S.24(2) of the Charter +2 more

Case Brief

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Parties

Regina

Crown

Hugo Kester Mitchell

Accused

Procedural Posture

Criminal / Voir Dire and Trial (acquitted)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the redacted Information to Obtain (ITO) provided reliable grounds to support the search warrant
  2. 2 Whether inaccuracies, omissions or misleading descriptions in the ITO required excision or invalidation of the warrant
  3. 3 Whether amplification evidence could cure defects in the ITO

Ratio Decidendi

The court found material inaccuracies, omissions and unreliable descriptions in the ITO (location of officers, terrain, odour source attribution, and overstated FLIR results) which, even after amplification, left no reliable grounds to support the warrant; the warrant was invalid, the resulting search unreasonable, and pursuant to the Grant s.24(2) analysis the evidence was excluded, leading to acquittal.

Court Disposition

Warrant invalidated; seized evidence excluded; accused acquitted.

Orders

  • Warrant declared invalid and applicable portions of the ITO excised
  • Seized evidence excluded under s.24(2) of the Charter