R. v. Bidesi

R. v. Bidesi

Cst. Benita Cieslar was a properly qualified expert to translate the Fijian Hindi portions because the Mohan criteria were met: the evidence was relevant and necessary, there was no exclusionary rule or undue prejudice, and her special knowledge acquired through life experience speaking the local BC dialect of...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
2015 BCSC 206
Parties
Crown: Regina; Accused: Russell Atma Bidesi
Court
Supreme Court of British Columbia
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
13 February 2015
Procedural Posture
Criminal / Trial Admissibility Ruling
Outcome
Admitted - Constable Benita Cieslar qualified to give opinion evidence translating the Fijian Hindi portions of the intercepted February 27, 2012 telephone conversation.
Legal Topics
Expert Qualification, Mohan Criteria, Translation Admissibility, Sanghera Distinction, Cost Benefit Analysis
Source Language
english
Criminal Law Evidence Expert Evidence Interpretation/translation Wiretap/intercept Evidence Publication Ban Expert Qualification Mohan Criteria +3 more

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Parties

Regina

Crown

Russell Atma Bidesi

Accused

Procedural Posture

Criminal / Trial Admissibility Ruling

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether Constable Benita Cieslar is a properly qualified expert to translate Fijian Hindi to English
  2. 2 Whether Mohan criteria for expert evidence are satisfied
  3. 3 Whether the translation evidence is necessary and prejudicial

Ratio Decidendi

Cst. Benita Cieslar was a properly qualified expert to translate the Fijian Hindi portions because the Mohan criteria were met: the evidence was relevant and necessary, there was no exclusionary rule or undue prejudice, and her special knowledge acquired through life experience speaking the local BC dialect of Fijian Hindi sufficed for admissibility given distinguishing factors from Sanghera (absence of certified Fijian Hindi interpreters, local dialectal variation, translation performed outside court and brief duration), so her opinion translation evidence was admissible.

Court Disposition

Admitted - Constable Benita Cieslar qualified to give opinion evidence translating the Fijian Hindi portions of the intercepted February 27, 2012 telephone conversation.

Orders

  • Constable Benita Cieslar is qualified to give opinion evidence as to the translation of the Fijian Hindi portions of the February 27, 2012 recorded telephone conversation.
  • The translation submitted by Cst. Cieslar may be admitted into evidence for the purposes of the trial.