Accused convicted of various offences including aggravated sexual assault. Accused alleged breaches of s. 7 (and other Charter rights), and sought a stay of proceedings, or reduction in sentence, given his treatment while at the Edmonton Remand Centre. Issue regarding what forms of evidence were admissible in seeking to establish the alleged breaches.
Held: Canadian penal institution standards evidence admissible.
“Standards” evidence admissible, provided that it related to the specific complaints made by the accused, and was relevant to the Court’s consideration of the accused while at the Remand Centre. Anecdotal evidence from the accused, or other inmates, regarding conditions in federal jails not admissible. As per Mohan [1994] 2 SCR 9, “the Court is entitled to undertake a ‘cost / benefit’ analysis to exclude evidence that will involve an inordinate amount of time which is not commensurate with its value.”
T. Engel – Defence Counsel