R. v. Chaisson (D.), (2006) 347 N.R. 282 (SCC)

• Judge: McLachlin, C.J.C., Binnie, Fish, Abella and Charron, JJ.
• Court: Supreme Court of Canada
• Case Date: Wednesday March 15, 2006
• Jurisdiction: Canada (Federal)
• Citations: (2006), 347 N.R. 282 (SCC);2006 SCC 11;[2006] 1 SCR 415;347 NR 282;206 CCC (3d) 1;[2006] SCJ No 11 (QL);139 CRR (2d) 26;256 Nfld & PEIR 181;263 DLR (4th) 577

R. v. Chaisson (D.) (2006), 347 N.R. 282 (SCC)

MLB headnote and full text

[French language version follows English language version]

[La version française vient à la suite de la version anglaise]

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Temp. Cite: [2006] N.R. TBEd. MR.044

David Chaisson (appellant) v. Her Majesty the Queen (respondent)

(31155; 2006 SCC 11; 2006 CSC 11)

Indexed As: R. v. Chaisson (D.)

Supreme Court of Canada

McLachlin, C.J.C., Binnie, Fish, Abella and Charron, JJ.

March 30, 2006.

Summary:

The accused was acquitted of a charge of possession of marijuana for the purposes of trafficking contrary to s. 5(2) of the Con­trolled Drug and Substances Act. The Crown appealed.

The Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal, in a decision reported at 249 Nfld. & P.E.I.R. 252; 743 A.P.R. 252, allowed the appeal, quashed the acquittal and entered a conviction. The accused appealed.

The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the appeal and restored the acquittal.

Civil Rights - Topic 1646

Property - Search and seizure - Unreason­able search and seizure defined - A police officer observed a vehicle parked off by it­self in a parking lot - The officer saw the accused, sitting in the driver's seat, throw something onto the floor - The officer asked the accused and the passenger to get out of the vehicle but did not read them their rights - The officer saw a plastic bag on the floor that contained what appeared to be marijuana - He placed the accused and the passenger under arrest and searched the vehicle - He seized a total of 1,020 grams of marijuana - The officer brought the accused to the police station and read him his rights - The trial judge found that the accused's rights under ss. 8, 9 and 10(b) of the Charter had been viol­ated, excluded the evidence under s. 24(2) and entered an acquittal - The Newfound­land and Labrador Court of Appeal al­lowed a Crown appeal and entered a con­viction, concluding that only s. 10(b) had been violated and that this violation did not warrant exclusion of the evidence - The Supreme Court of Canada allowed an ap­peal and restored the acquittal - The Court of Appeal impermissibly substituted its own findings of fact for those of the trial judge - The trial judge was entitled, on the facts as he found them, to conclude that the accused's Charter rights had been violated and he committed no reviewable er­ror in concluding that the cumulative effect of these violations warranted exclu­sion of the evidence under s. 24(2).

Civil Rights - Topic 1651

Property - Search and seizure - Warrantless search and seizure - Motor vehicles - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Civil Rights - Topic 3603

Detention and imprisonment - Detention - What constitutes arbitrary detention - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Civil Rights - Topic 4608

Right to counsel - General - Right to be advised of - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Civil Rights - Topic 8368

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - Denial of rights - Remedies - Exclusion of evidence - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Criminal Law - Topic 4806

Appeals - Indictable offences - General principles - Duty of appellate court - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Criminal Law - Topic 4973

Appeals - Indictable offences - Powers of Court of Appeal - Power to review and weigh evidence - [See Civil Rights - Topic 1646].

Counsel:

Kenneth James Mahoney, for the appellant;

S. David Frankel, Q.C., and James C. Mar­tin, for the respondent.

Solicitors of Record:

Baker Mahoney Law Firm, St. John's, Nfld. and Lab., for the appellant;

Attorney General of Canada, Vancouver, for the respondent.

This appeal was heard on March 15, 2006, by McLachlin, C.J.C., Binnie, Fish, Abella and Charron, JJ., of the Supreme Court of Canada. The judgment of the court was de­liv­ered in both official languages by Fish, J., on March 30, 2006.