Case information
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38126
David Joseph Beairsto v. Her Majesty the Queen
(Alberta) (Criminal) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-07-05 | Close file on Leave | |
| 2019-07-05 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2019-07-05 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2019-07-04 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Alberta (Edmonton), Number 1603-0224-A, 2018 ABCA 118, dated March 28, 2018, is dismissed. Dismissed |
|
| 2019-06-04 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), the respondent; Response to update pursuant to rule 92.1 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2019-06-03 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), the applicant; Update pursuant to Rule 92.1 | David Joseph Beairsto |
| 2018-08-13 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, for consideration by the Court | |
| 2018-08-08 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-08-08 | David Joseph Beairsto |
| 2018-06-28 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form) | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-06-28 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Completed on: 2018-06-28 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2018-06-13 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), This application has similar issues as 38053 - Blais v. R. | David Joseph Beairsto |
| 2018-05-30 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal, FILE OPENED 2018/05/30 | |
| 2018-05-28 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), Amended certificate required-rec'd 2018/05/31 | David Joseph Beairsto |
| 2018-05-28 | Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Amended notice required-rec'd 2018/06/04 and inserted into the books., Completed on: 2018-05-28 | David Joseph Beairsto |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Beairsto, David Joseph | Applicant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Her Majesty the Queen | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: Beairsto, David Joseph
Counsel
604 - 1111 Melville Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6E 3V6
Telephone: (604) 688-8331
FAX: (604) 688-8350
Email: hovan@shaw.ca
Agent
2600 - 160 Elgin Street
P.O. Box 466, Stn. A
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 786-0211
FAX: (613) 788-3573
Email: matthew.estabrooks@gowlingwlg.com
Party: Her Majesty the Queen
Counsel
700 EPCOR Tower 10423, 101st Street
Edmonton, Alberta
T4H 0E7
Telephone: (780) 495-4079
FAX: (780) 495-6940
Email: ron.reimer@ppsc-sppc.gc.ca
Agent
160 Elgin Street
12th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
Telephone: (613) 957-4770
FAX: (613) 941-7865
Email: Francois.Lacasse@ppsc-sppc.gc.ca
Summary
Keywords
Charter – Criminal law – Search and seizure – Interception of private communications – Text messages – Whether police officer intercepted private communications within the meaning of Part VI of the Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985 c. C-46, when using applicant’s drug trade associate’s phone to engage in text messaging with applicant – Whether applicant had reasonable expectation of privacy in text messages exchanged between himself and undercover police officer – Whether applicant’s s. 7 or 8 Charter rights infringed.
Summary
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.
A police officer impersonated one of Mr. Beairsto’s drug trade associates using the associate’s phone which had been seized in the course of a separate investigation. The communications between the officer and Mr. Beairsto led to a cocaine transaction whereby Mr. Beairsto sent a brick of cocaine in the mail to the address provided by the officer, and in return, the officer sent him a weighted package that was supposed to contain cash. After confirming his identity to receive delivery of the cash, Mr. Beairsto was arrested. The phone Mr. Beairsto used to communicate with the officer was found on him in the course of the search incident to arrest. At trial, Mr. Beairsto was unsuccessful in his attempt to exclude the evidence. He was convicted of one count of trafficking cocaine. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
Lower court rulings
Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta
130702830Q1, 2016 ABQB 216
Applicant convicted of one count of trafficking cocaine
Court of Appeal of Alberta (Edmonton)
1603-0224-A, 2018 ABCA 118
Appeal dismissed
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filing out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.
Downloadable PDFs
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Related links
Factums on appeal
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
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