Articles Under This Category
In an attempt to clear the high number of cases currently awaiting trial in the Ontario Courts, the government has created a new guilty plea certificate system that incentivizes those accused to plead guilty by providing legal representation for a guilty plea. ...
For many members of the public, the legal system may seem monolithic. Popular culture doesn’t always do a good job of distinguishing between the different kinds of law. We generally understand that there are judges, lawyers, and juries - and for many, that’s as far as...
A Gardiner Hearing is when evidence is called during sentencing after an accused person has entered a guilty plea to outstanding charges, or in very rare instances has been found guilty after a trial. During a Gardiner Hearing evidence is presented to the Judge on...
The OCJ is adjourning all criminal matters as a result of the COVID-19 precautions. Starting Monday, March 16, 2020, the Ontario Court of Justice suspended the regular daily operations of all trial courts. All scheduled trials, set-date appearances, scheduled...
Gun buy-back and amnesty programs allow people to surrender firearms to police safely. Most firearms used in street-level crimes are bought or stolen from Canadian homes. So these programs are aimed at reducing firearms offences in Toronto communities. During these...
In Canada, sentencing is not an exact process, it is fact-driven and highly individualized. Sentencing is not a strictly codified and regimented process with pre-determined set punishments. In short, sentencing can be considered more of an Art rather than a Science....
This past year, the media has been drawing attention to the frequency of ORB inmates escaping from CamH Custody. The highest-profile of these being the escape of Zhebin Cong, “The Meat Cleaver Killer.” Zhebin Cong made headlines back in 2008 after beheading a...
A verbal threat can get you in trouble, even if you didn’t mean it. It is a criminal offence, referred to as an utter threat. Given that utter threat is a hybrid offence, if the Crown chooses to proceed by indictment a person convicted of this offence can face a...
You’re relaxing in your home when you receive a call from the police. The officer on the line informs you that the police want to interview you for a criminal investigation, that they want to ask a few questions, or maybe even tell you that they want your side of the...
Losing your visa if you get arrested in Canada can affect a large group of people. At any given time, people staying in Canada on visas make up a significant amount of people in the country. In the 5 years since Canada began the 10-year visa program, over 3 million...
Browse Our Blog
In Toronto, bail is only granted in exceptional circumstances for those who have outstanding murder charges. In order to be considered for bail, you and your proposed sureties must meet certain conditions set out by the court. If you are unable to meet these conditions, you may be required to...
Nobody wants to talk about the actual cost of sexual assault charges. Particularly when it comes to discussing the actual costs that serious sexual offences impose on the justice system. This is likely due, in part, to the fact that most people not involved in the criminal justice system don't...
What Is a Drug Recognition Expert? A Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) is a police officer trained to scientifically identify if a person's ability to operate motor vehicle is drug impaired by or impaired by alcohol. They are scientifically trained to determine if a person is driving under the...