Accused pled guilty to numerous offences including robbery of a cab driver. Accused threatened the cab driver with a hammer and stole $75. While in custody awaiting sentence, the accused “suffered a serious injury to his face … Mr. Brar has not given the necessary authorization to his lawyer to produce the medical records. Accordingly, I have only Mr. Brar’s representation through his lawyer as to how the injury occurred (he says a guard assaulted him).“
Held: 18 months jail on the robbery.
Robbery sentence reduced from what otherwise would have been a 2 year sentence. “There is a duty on the part of the judicial system to take reasonable steps to keep safe those within its control … I conclude that he was somehow injured while in remand custody … [The injuries] must be taken into account in sentencing, and in my view require more than the usual 1.5 days credit for each day of pre-trial custody. I rely on … Nasogaluak 2010 SCC 6.”
I. Jetha – Defence Counsel