Case information

Charter of Rights and Freedoms — Cruel and unusual punishment — Criminal law — Sentencing — Appellate review — Whether majority of Court of Appeal erred by relying on an alleged material error by sentencing judge to avoid showing due deference to sentencing judge’s exercise of discretion — Whether majority of Court of Appeal erred by undermining sentencing judge’s consideration of Gladue factors — Whether Court of Appeal erred by failing to consider whether mandatory minimum sentence violates s. 12 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms

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.

Mr. Chief pleaded guilty to transferring a firearm with ammunition, possession of a restricted firearm with ammunition and breach of a recognizance. A mandatory minimum of three years is set out in the Criminal Code for trafficking a restricted firearm with ammunition. The sentencing judge however found applying the mandatory minimum would be contrary to s. 12 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. She sentenced Mr. Chief to two years less a day to be served in the community and two years of supervised probation. A majority of the Court of Appeal allowed an appeal and ordered concurrent 3.5 year sentences for the firearms offences, left the sentence for breach of recognizance undisturbed, set aside the probation order and stayed the remainder of the sentence.