Canada Case Law

R. v. White

Court

Nova Scotia Court of Appeal

The sentencing judge erred as a matter of law by relying on Bratzer, an exceptional and materially distinguishable precedent, which led to a failure to apply the proportionality principle and the primacy of denunciation and deterrence; the Court allowed the Crown appeals, set aside the conditional sentence and substituted a fit global sentence of four years' imprisonment with specified surrender and credit directions.

Source excerpt

• Sentencing principles
• Proportionality
• Denunciation
• Deterrence
• Conditional sentence
• Irca/social context evidence

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Stewart v. Canada

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court found a correctional officer used unjustified force against Kelsey Stewart, causing facial injuries. It awarded $50,000 for battery and $15,000 for Charter vindication.

• Use of force
• Battery
• Section 7 charter
• Section 12 charter
• Vicarious liability
• Damages assessment

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R. v. Laidlaw

Court

Nova Scotia Provincial Court

The arrest was unlawful because the available information supported only a reasonable suspicion of alcohol consumption, not objectively reasonable grounds to believe the accused had driven while impaired; the breathalyzer readings flowed from that unlawful arrest and, applying the Grant factors, must be excluded under s.24 of the Charter.

Source excerpt

• Arrest
• Reasonable grounds vs suspicion
• Asd vs breathalyzer demands
• Voluntariness of statements
• Exclusion of evidence under s.24

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R. v. Khouchaba

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court found the initial traffic stop lawful, but held that Charter ss. 10(a) and 10(b) were breached when the focus shifted, and that the trunk search breached s. 8.

• Arbitrary detention (s.9)
• Unreasonable search (s.8)
• Right to counsel (s.10(a) and (b))
• Warrantless arrest (criminal code s.495)
• Section 24(2) exclusion of evidence
• Charter-right-to-counsel

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R. v. Dergez

Court

British Columbia Court of Appeal

The British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed Blake Everett Dergez’s conviction appeal and sentence appeal, upholding findings that he deliberately doused a police officer with gasoline and issued threats.

• Assault with a weapon
• Uttering threats
• Abuse of process
• Totality principle
• Credibility and reliability of witnesses
• Pre-trial custody credit

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R. v. Van Buskirk

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held that a parolee had no reasonable expectation of privacy in information CSC shared with police for supervision, so he lacked s. 8 standing.

• Section 8
• Expectation of privacy
• Information sharing
• Parole supervision
• Standing
• Section-8

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R. v. Long

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The appeal is dismissed: the trial judge correctly treated COVID-19 as an exceptional circumstance and, after deducting defence delay and COVID-19 exceptional delay, the remaining delay was below the 18-month presumptive ceiling; although the trial judge erred in treating the Bill C-75 related period as exceptional, that error was immaterial to the outcome; the trial judge did not misapprehend the evidence and the convictions are upheld.

Source excerpt

• Unreasonable delay
• Section 11(b) charter
• Bill c-75
• Covid-19 delay
• Preliminary inquiry
• Credibility and misapprehension of evidence

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Wood v. McCauley

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held an analyst’s certificate from a criminal investigation was not admissible for its truth in this civil trial because the business records foundation was not proved.

• Hearsay
• Business records exception
• Analyst certificate
• Admissibility of evidence
• Expert evidence
• Charter remedies

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R. v. Handlen

Court

British Columbia Court of Appeal

Appeal dismissed in a first degree murder conviction. The court upheld admission of pre-hypnosis eyewitness statements and a Mr. Big confession and reenactment.

• Principled exception to hearsay
• Mr. big confession admissibility
• Necessity and threshold reliability
• Reconsideration of rulings
• Abuse of process
• Confirmatory evidence

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R. v. Ranhotra

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Court held the appellant was not detained when he made his on‑scene utterance so Charter s.10(b) was not engaged and the statement was admissible; the Crown's in‑court firearm demonstration and related submissions did not render the trial unfair given available evidence and the trial judge's curative instruction; the motive directions were adequate; and the sentence of life imprisonment with 15 years parole ineligibility was fit and should be upheld.

Source excerpt

• Detention and custody under charter s.10
• Admissibility of statements
• Voir dire
• Jury charge and closing submissions
• Motive in homicide
• Parole ineligibility for murder

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