On May 15, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada [“SCC” or “the Court”] will hear the appeal of R. v. Zacharias, 2022 ABCA 112 [“Zacharias”]. The appeal is from the Alberta Court of Appeal [“ABCA”] and relates to alleged breaches of the accused’s rights under ss. 8 and 9 of the Canadian Charter of Rights […]
In R v Tim, 2022 SCC 12 [Tim], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC” or “the Court”) affirmed convictions for drug and firearm offences despite the initial arrest having been made by a police officer who mistakenly identified the prescription drug gabapentin as a controlled substance. The dissent would have acquitted the accused, finding that […]
In R v Stairs, 2022 SCC 11 [Stairs], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) attempted to balance privacy rights and law enforcement objectives. The court addressed the question of when, and under what circumstances, officers can search an arrested person’s home without a warrant. The unsettling answer is: more often than you would expect.
Strip searches are an invasive police power that, if conducted without the proper preconditions, can infringe s. 8 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms 1982, Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (UK), 1982, c 11(“the Charter”). S.8 protects an individual’s right to be secure against unreasonable search and seizure. It is established in […]
