Latest
Friday, February 14, 2020 @ 2:16 PM
Ontario human rights body, prison union urge ‘appropriate investment’ in corrections funding
The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) and the division of the public service union that represents frontline correctional workers are calling for more funding to improve corrections for inmates and staff alike. The two organizations banded together to make a joint submission to the provincial government for more funding in advance of the 2020 budget release. ... [read more]
Thursday, February 13, 2020 @ 9:39 AM
B.C. cannabis case turning point in municipalities’ power to regulate business, lawyer says
The B.C. Court of Appeal has upheld the constitutionality of the City of Vancouver’s former bylaws on medical cannabis dispensaries, but a lawyer involved in the case is saying, despite the fact that bylaws in question predated Canada’s 2018 legalization of cannabis, the decision means municipalities in the province would be entitled to legislate, license and zone for businesses which are still illegal federally. ... [read more]
Thursday, February 13, 2020 @ 9:12 AM
CRIMINAL CODE OFFENCES - Offences in relation to terrorism
Appeal by the Crown from the acquittal of the respondent on several charges of committing indictable offences for the benefit of a terrorist group. ... [read more]
Wednesday, February 12, 2020 @ 1:06 PM
Carte blanche for Crown prosecutors in ‘complex cases’?
The Ontario Court of Appeal has issued a decision regarding the “particularly complex case” exemption that will likely make it more difficult for defendants in complex criminal and regulatory prosecutions to assert their Charter right to be tried within a reasonable time. ... [read more]
Wednesday, February 12, 2020 @ 10:28 AM
Sexual assault law training for judges needed, say lawyers, politicians
Bill C-5, An Act to amend the Judges Act and the Criminal Code, is being lauded by lawyers and politicians alike as a positive step for Canada’s judiciary, but stressed that issues regarding the intersections of race, class and sexual orientation need to be included in judicial training. ... [read more]
Wednesday, February 12, 2020 @ 9:57 AM
SENTENCING - Causing bodily harm by criminal negligence - Forfeiture
Appeal by the Crown from a decision of a sentencing judge refusing to make a DNA order and an order for the forfeiture of the respondent’s motor vehicle. ... [read more]
Tuesday, February 11, 2020 @ 9:12 AM
Legacy of Canada’s everydog, Punky Santics
Animal law was poised to finally have its day in Canada’s top court in 2020, but it was not to be. In January 2020, I was guest lecturing on animal law at law schools in Asia and Europe when I heard the jarring news that Punky Santics, Canada’s everydog on death row, had just his case dismissed by the Supreme Court of Canada. ... [read more]
Monday, February 10, 2020 @ 12:31 PM
Despite horrors, Aboriginal overincarceration surmountable problem | Laurelly Dale
I feel disheartened yet again writing about the overincarceration of Aboriginal peoples. I recall as a young student in undergrad devouring research on the subject for a project in my Canadian politics class. That was over 18 years ago. Everyone agrees this is a problem. So why are we doing the same old thing to address it? ... [read more]
Monday, February 10, 2020 @ 9:51 AM
Sexual assault retrial ‘demonstrates the hazards of calling witnesses out of order,’ court rules
The Ontario Court of Appeal has ordered a new trial in a sexual assault case due to the use of a prior inconsistent statement made by the complainant to her doctor, which was raised at trial. The court stressed that trial judges should “articulate how a prior consistent statement assists in assessing the trustworthiness of a witness’s in-court testimony.” ... [read more]
Friday, February 07, 2020 @ 9:53 AM
Why prison is capitalism’s penalty box | Jeffrey Hartman
Mental health transcends socioeconomic status. Bell’s concern for mental health does not. Sadly, neither does ours as a society. ... [read more]
