Canada Case Law

R. v. Ramdeo

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Court dismissed the appeal: the trial judge did not err in his treatment of the Vetrovec witness, appropriately relied on independent confirmatory evidence (DNA, plastic ties, highway footage, witness accounts and cell‑tower data), applied the correct burden and standard notwithstanding lack of verbatim W.(D.) language, and reasonably rejected the appellant's account; convictions and sentence are upheld.

Source excerpt

• Kidnapping
• Identification evidence
• Vetrovec witness
• Corroboration
• W.(d.) standard
• Credibility assessment

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R. v. Teixeira

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court reopened a pretrial disclosure ruling, upheld public interest privilege, and ordered redactions lifted because it lacked inherent jurisdiction to impose the Crown’s limiting conditions.

• Public interest privilege
• Disclosure
• Right to full answer and defence (s.7 charter)
• Inherent jurisdiction
• Canada evidence act s.37
• Vetrovec witness

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R. v. Nguyen

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held that the complete investigative file concerning a new charge against protected witness A.B. was not first-party disclosure and remained subject to third-party/WPPA procedures.

• First-party disclosure
• Third-party disclosure
• Witness protection program act
• Public interest privilege
• Vetrovec witness
• Credibility and impeachment

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R. v. Mohamed

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Court upheld the trial judge's exclusion of A.A.'s police statements because, on a threshold reliability analysis, the procedural indicia were insufficient to substitute for contemporaneous cross‑examination and the corroborative evidence did not rule out plausible alternative explanations (fabrication or tailoring to disclosure) for the material aspects of the statements; therefore the hearsay testimony failed the principled hearsay test and the Crown's appeal is dismissed.

Source excerpt

• Principled hearsay exception
• Vetrovec witness
• Corroboration
• Procedural reliability
• Substantive reliability
• Admissibility of prior police statements

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R. v. Olson

Court

British Columbia Court of Appeal

British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal from conviction, holding that admitted hearsay met the principled approach and did not affect the verdicts.

• Hearsay admissibility
• Principled approach
• Threshold reliability
• Necessity
• Vetrovec witness
• Curative proviso

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R. v. Oppong

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The trial judge did not err in admitting limited expert opinion about gang characteristics because it was necessary to provide contextual understanding beyond ordinary juror knowledge and the judge properly weighed probative value against prejudicial effect, constrained the expert's scope, and gave strong jury instructions; the proposed defensive admissions did not constitute a material change that altered that balance; and the sentencing judge's finding of a leadership role was supportable on the record and produced a fit sentence.

Source excerpt

• Expert evidence
• Gang evidence
• Mohan test
• Material change in circumstances
• Oath-helping
• Criminal organization offence

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R. v. Athwal

Court

British Columbia Court of Appeal

British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal from a first degree murder conviction, upholding hearsay admission, waiver of a Hart voir dire, and refusal of a mistrial.

• Hearsay
• Mr. big operation
• Hart voir dire
• Admissibility
• Mistrial
• Vetrovec witness

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R. v. Hall

Court

British Columbia Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal dismissed a conviction appeal, holding the trial judge did not materially misapprehend evidence and did not commit a Beaudry error.

• Identity
• Vetrovec witness
• Misapprehension of evidence
• Beaudry error
• Credibility
• Confirmatory evidence

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R. v. Bidesi

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held that a witness’s videotaped police statement was necessary but lacked threshold reliability, so it was excluded for the truth of its contents.

• Hearsay principled exception
• Threshold reliability
• Necessity
• Videotaped statements
• Corroboration
• Vetrovec witness

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R. v. Pashazahiri

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The trial judge lawfully cautioned about Vetrovec witnesses and, relying on the totality of evidence — including the appellant's presence with known assailants before and after the attack, elimination of other suspects, and the victim's blood on the appellant's pants — reasonably concluded the appellant participated in the aggravated assault; the Court of Appeal will not overturn those credibility and factual findings.

Source excerpt

• Aggravated assault
• Vetrovec witness
• Identification evidence
• Credibility findings

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