Case information

Criminal law — Evidence — Witnesses — Rule in Browne v. Dunn — Whether trial judge misapplied rule — Criminal law — Evidence — Reasonable notice — Whether Crown provided reasonable notice of its intention to rely on certificate of analyst — Constitutional law — Charter of Rights — Right to life, liberty, and security of person — Lost evidence — Whether accused entitled to remedy for police not obtaining surveillance video — Courts — Judges — Reasonable apprehension of bias — Whether trial judge biased against defence counsel

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.

Police conducted a traffic stop on the applicant’s vehicle shortly after he left the parking lot of a convenience store. In the course of the traffic stop, police observed a handgun inside the vehicle and arrested the applicant. A search of the vehicle revealed cash, drugs, and ammunition for the handgun. At trial, the primary issue was possession. The applicant also applied for Charter relief for the police’s failure to obtain CCTV surveillance video from the convenience store.

The trial judge held that the applicant did not establish the relevance of the surveillance video and dismissed the Charter application. She further held that the applicant’s possession of the contents of his vehicle was the only reasonable inference available on the evidence, and convicted him. The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal, finding no error in the trial judge’s reasons, and no basis for the applicant’s allegation of bias.