Summary

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Summary

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Charter of Rights - Criminal - Cruel and unusual treatment or punishment - Sentencing - Constitutional exemptions - Whether Canadian law recognizes the legal availability of a stand alone "constitutional exemption" from a mandatory minimum sentence as a remedy for an individual who establishes that the sentence is "cruel and unusual punishment" - Whether the Alberta Court of Appeal erred in failing to uphold the trial judge's decision to grant such a remedy.

A jury found the applicant guilty of manslaughter for the fatal shooting of Darren Varley. Manslaughter requires a mandatory minimum sentence of four years imprisonment. At the time of the shooting, the applicant, an on-duty member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, was attempting to place Varley in a police cell. Varley assaulted the applicant and gained control of his police revolver. The applicant regained control of the gun and fired two shots. Despite the fact that the applicant's fire arms training with the RCMP and other approved agencies had trained him to fire a second shot, the jury concluded that there was no need for a second shot.

Lower Court Rulings