Case information

Charter of Rights — Right to be tried within reasonable time — Whether Quebec Court of Appeal erred in finding that Crown and judicial system acted with due diligence to minimize delays after judicial activities were resumed on July 28, 2020 — Whether Crown, in context of COVID 19 pandemic, is excused from its duty to establish that it took reasonable steps to avoid delay — Whether wait-and-see attitude of accused, who raises issue of delays for first time once ceiling has been exceeded, excuses Crown from establishing that it took reasonable steps to avoid such ceiling being exceeded — Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, s. 11(b).

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.

Three charges were laid against Mr. Rivera on February 6, 2019; a motion to exclude evidence was scheduled to be heard on March 23 and 24, 2020. On March 16, 2020, a motion for cancellation of the summons was brought because of the pandemic. Following the denial of the motion to exclude evidence, a motion for a stay of proceedings for unreasonable delays was heard on March 10 and was also denied. The trial took place on April 12, 2021, and Mr. Rivera was found guilty on May 25, 2021.

At trial, the judge deducted from the total delay three distinct periods, including the one arising from exceptional circumstances. The delay was then 460 days, which put it well below the presumptive ceiling of 18 months. The Court of Appeal was of the opinion that the file was resumed in a reasonably diligent manner after the pandemic and that there was nothing that warranted its intervention.