Criminal
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September 17, 2025
Expansion of Saskatoon prison now open
Saskatchewan has now opened its newly expanded prison in Saskatoon. According to a Sept. 17 news release, Saskatchewan’s government has opened the expanded Saskatoon Correctional Centre (SCC) — thus “increasing the capacity of adult men in custody by 312 beds in the province.”
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September 17, 2025
CRIMINAL CODE OFFENCES - Impaired operation or operation over the legal limit - Disclosure of information with respect to instrument
Appeals by Hepfner and Kim from decisions of the Summary Convictions Appeal Court dismissing appeals from convictions; appeal by Gault from decision of the Summary Convictions Appeal Court allowing appeal from acquittal. All three cases were prosecutions for operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 80 or over.
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September 17, 2025
Ontario Court of Appeal clarifies rules of evidence for impaired convictions
Impaired driving is a criminal offence throughout Canada. However, the requirements for the Crown to prove impairment differ depending on the province. The Ontario Court of Appeal decision in R. v. Kim, 2025 ONCA 478 involved three individuals who, after appeals to a Summary Convictions Appeal Court, were convicted of operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 or higher.
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September 16, 2025
Cabinet says new criminal legislation coming in ‘matter of days’ but federal budget not till Nov. 4
With MPs back in the capital for the fall, the first two days in the House of Commons were busy ones for legislators. On Sept. 16, 2025, Justice Minister Sean Fraser disclosed some of the Liberal government’s immediate plans and timing for new criminal justice legislation, while Finance and National Revenue Minister François-Philippe Champagne informed the Commons today that he will deliver a somewhat tardy federal budget on Nov. 4, 2025 — not in October, as Liberal House Leader Steven MacKinnon stated when he laid out the minority government’s fall agenda at a press conference the previous day.
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September 16, 2025
Ontario case raises questions around review board’s handling of those not criminally responsible
An Ontario lawyer says a recent court ruling shows questions remain around whether the provincial board overseeing those deemed not criminally responsible is properly applying the test for keeping them locked up in hospital — particularly when they have not reoffended or misbehaved.
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September 16, 2025
Privacy debate: Cameras, speeding and Charter rights
Two recent news stories in Ontario have sparked public debate about how much privacy citizens should have.
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September 15, 2025
Ottawa could waive biometrics visa requirement for Palestinian trapped in Gaza ‘crisis’: judge
A Federal Court judge has highlighted that Ottawa can remove a potentially fatal roadblock for Palestinians facing starvation and intensified bombardment in the Gaza Strip, who have applied to come to Canada under the now-closed federal Temporary public policy to facilitate temporary resident visas for certain extended family affected by the crisis in Gaza.
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September 15, 2025
Appeal Court validates circumstantial evidence in Toronto shooting trial
After a two-week investigation, the police arrested a 22-year-old man following the “unprovoked” shooting of a 19-year-old woman in Etobicoke, Ont., according to a Sept. 4, 2019, Toronto Star report.
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September 12, 2025
Appeal Court orders new trial in British Columbia child exploitation case
The American poet and journalist Carl Sandburg has been quoted as saying, “If the facts are against you, argue the law. If the law is against you, argue the facts. If the law and the facts are against you, pound the table and yell like hell.” That appears to be the advice that legal counsel might have received when defending Eric David Guenter.
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September 11, 2025
Poilievre proposes bail reform, civil liberties group asserts there’s no evidence for change
On the very same day that federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre announced that his party will be introducing the Jail Not Bail Act after Parliament reconvenes in the fall, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) has delivered a strongly worded message to the federal Minister of Justice Sean Fraser: any policy aimed at reforming the Canadian bail system must be based on statistics and not on misinformation. The Thursday statement included a letter the CCLA had delivered in June.