Criminal
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March 21, 2025
Canada sanctions 8 Venezuelan officials, 3 Haitians individuals with dealings and immigration bans
The Government of Canada has imposed sanctions against three individuals it says have exacerbated the political, security and humanitarian crisis in Haiti and against eight current senior officials of the Venezuelan government it says have engaged in activities that directly or indirectly supported human rights violations or anti-democracy violations in Venezuela.
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March 21, 2025
SCC upholds 9-0 conviction for indecent assault committed against a young child
Underscoring that adults’ intentional sexual contact with children is a crime, regardless of who physically initiates the contact, the Supreme Court of Canada has unanimously affirmed the indecent assault conviction of a babysitter who induced a five-year-old’s oral contact with what he falsely told her was his “ice-cream” maker.
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March 21, 2025
Attention Walmart shoplifters | Marcel Strigberger
“My object all sublime I shall achieve in time — To let the punishment fit the crime” — The Mikado
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March 21, 2025
Quebec legislative proposal to create Unified Family Tribunal panned by experts
In its latest effort to revamp family law, Quebec introduced a bill that lays the groundwork to establish a unified family court to curb delays, simplify proceedings, and handle the majority of family legal proceedings, with an eye towards eventually stripping Superior Court of family matters, an undertaking family law experts have panned as ill-conceived and riddled with shortcomings as it is currently drafted.
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March 21, 2025
Saskatchewan investing in community safety via policing, staffing, border security
As part of its 2025-26 budget, Saskatchewan is investing more than $800 million in the areas of policing, prisons, public safety and border security. According to a March 19 news release, the investment will include $679.4 million for the Ministry of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety; $118.9 million for the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA); and $8.8 million for the Saskatchewan Firearms Office (SFO).
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March 21, 2025
Charter breach, conditional sentence order overturned by British Columbia Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal for British Columbia has overturned a lower court decision mitigating the prison sentence of a man found guilty of two counts of possession of a loaded shotgun, and one count of possession in contravention of a firearm’s prohibition. The unanimous decision, in R. v. Jaramillo, 2025 BCCA 77, announced March 12, found the trial judge erred in law and principle in applying s. 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and also incorrectly applied the law in imposing a conditional sentence order (CSO).
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March 21, 2025
Can a dog cause a Charter breach?
The use of a police service dog during an arrest became a key concern in a recent British Columbia appeal. Preston Hale Jaramillo pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a loaded handgun in contravention of a firearms prohibition.
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March 21, 2025
SENTENCING - Criminal harassment - Abduction of person under 16 - Theft and offences resembling theft
Sentencing of Balasooriyan for possession of stolen property exceeding $5000, attempted abduction of a minor below 14 years, mischief and criminal harassment and breach of release order.
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March 20, 2025
Quebec roadworks company to pay $150k for illegal paving contract allocation scheme
A Quebec roadworks company, Pavex Ltd, has agreed to pay $150,000 for entering into illegal agreements with competitors through a former employee to allocate territories for paving contracts awarded by the ministère des Transports du Québec.
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March 20, 2025
B.C. Court of Appeal affirms B.C. jurisdiction over Quebec companies in opioid class action
The B.C. Court of Appeal has affirmed British Columbia’s jurisdiction over Quebec-based opioid suppliers in the province’s class action to recover healthcare costs linked to the opioid crisis.