Summary

Keywords

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms – Criminal law – Extradition – Judicial review of Minister’s surrender order – Whether Court of Appeal of British Columbia erred in holding that the Minister of Justice’s surrender decision did not violate rights to make full answer and defence and to a fair trial, as protected by s. 7 of the Charter.

Summary

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On April 14, 2015, the United States sought Nathan Hall for prosecution of offences corresponding to trafficking in a controlled substance and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. Prior to the committal hearing, Mr. Hall sought to adduce exculpatory affidavit evidence deposing that he was not present at the material time and played no role in the events. The extradition judge dismissed the application, considering that the evidence did not bring into question the reliability of the evidence in the Record of the Case. Rather, he found it invited a weighing and comparison of the contents of the affidavits with the evidence of the investigating officers, which was beyond his function and should be left to the trier of fact.

The Supreme Court of British Columbia committed Mr. Hall for extradition, concluding the committal evidence was sufficient to establish a prima facie case of trafficking in a controlled substance and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and that a reasonable jury properly instructed could convict Mr. Hall of the corresponding offences. The committal decision was not appealed. The Minister subsequently directed Mr. Hall to be surrendered to the United States for prosecution. The B.C. Court of Appeal dismissed Mr. Hall’s application for judicial review, finding the Minister’s surrender decision was reasonable.

Lower Court Rulings