Case information

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Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.

Charter — Criminal law — Controlled drugs and substances — Trial judge’s duties — Assessing credibility of witnesses — Accused convicted of unlawfully producing cannabis, possessing that substance for purpose of trafficking, unlawfully exporting it and trafficking it — Charges arose from scheme for exportation and trafficking of cannabis through mail — Scheme was discovered when Canada Post employee saw contents of two envelopes accused had deposited in mail — Employee reported contents and a search warrant for accused’s home was issued — Employee testified at trial on a voir dire — Whether there is any basis upon which to interfere with trial judge’s findings on employee’s credibility — Whether trial judge erred in finding there was some evidence upon which issuing judge could rely to issue search warrant for accused’s home — Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, ss. 8 and 24(2); Canada Post Corporation Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-10; Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, S.C. 1996, c. 19.

The accused, Mr. Whalen, was convicted of four charges under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. The charges arose from a scheme for the exportation and trafficking of cannabis by mail. The scheme was discovered when a Canada Post employee saw the contents of two envelopes that Mr. Whalen had deposited in the mail. The employee reported the contents and a search warrant for Mr. Whalen’s home was issued. The employee, who testified on a voir dire, said the contents became visible because the envelopes had not been properly sealed. At the conclusion of the voir dire, the trial judge upheld the validity of the search warrant and denied Mr. Whalen’s motion to exclude the evidence seized under it. After the admission of that evidence, the trial judge found Mr. Whalen guilty on all charges. The trial judge sentenced Mr. Whalen to imprisonment for a total of four years less time spent in remand, which he calculated at 405 days. Mr. Whalen appealed the convictions and sought leave to appeal the sentence, submitting that the trial judge erred in upholding the validity of the warrant. However, the Court of Appeal dismissed both Mr. Whalen’s appeal and his application for leave to appeal.