R. v. Winters and Berquist, (1991) 120 A.R. 81 (CA)

• Judge: Harradence, Bracco and Stratton, JJ.A.
• Court: Court of Appeal (Alberta)
• Case Date: December 05, 1991
• Citations: (1991), 120 A.R. 81 (CA)

R. v. Winters (1991), 120 A.R. 81 (CA);

  8 W.A.C. 81

MLB headnote and full text

Her Majesty the Queen (respondent) v. Kenneth Gordon Berquist (appellant)

(No. 9003-0108-A)

Her Majesty the Queen (respondent) v. Arthur Robert Winters (appellant)

(No. 9003-0434A0)

Indexed As: R. v. Winters and Berquist

Alberta Court of Appeal

Harradence, Bracco

and Stratton, JJ.A.

December 5, 1991.

Summar y:

The accused were convicted of first degree murder. They were sentenced to life im­prisonment without eligibility for parole for 25 years. The accused appealed.

The Alberta Court of Appeal, in a decision reported 66 A.R. 165, dismissed the appeals. Leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada was denied.

Some six years after their convictions the accused applied separately for habeas corpus reviewing the legality of their detention and for an order declaring their detention to be contrary to s. 7 of the Charter. The applica­tions were both dismissed. The accused appealed.

The Alberta Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals. The three appeal judges gave dif­fering reasons for dismissing the appeal.

Civil Rights - Topic 646

Liberty - Limitations on - Prisoners - Parole ineligibility - The accused were convicted of first degree murder and sen­tenced to life imprisonment without parole eligibility for 25 years - Six years after their convictions and after all appeals were exhausted, the accused sought habeas corpus under s. 24(1) of the Charter - The accused alleged that they were convicted and sentenced under the wrong law (i.e., unconstitutional parts of ss. 213(d) and 21(2) of the Criminal Code), and therefore their continued parole ineligibility was contrary to the principle of fundamental justice that an accused must be tried and punished under the proper law in force at the time of the commission of the offence (Charter, ss. 7, 11(d)) - The Alberta Court of Appeal, affirmed the dismissal of the habeas corpus applications.

Civil Rights - Topic 8380.11

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - Denial of rights - Remedies - Habeas corpus - [See Civil Rights - Topic 646 ].

Habeas Corpus - Topic 2

General - When available - [See Civil Rights - Topic 646 ].

Cases Noticed:

Gamble v. R., [1988] 2 S.C.R. 595; 89 N.R. 161; 31 O.A.C. 81; 66 C.R.(3d) 193, consd. [para. 15 et seq.].

R. v. Gamble - see Gamble v. R.

Milne v. Canada et al., [1987] 2 S.C.R. 512; 81 N.R. 36; 25 O.A.C. 100, refd to. [para. 19].

R. v. Thomas (1990), 108 N.R. 147; 75 C.R.(3d) 352 (S.C.C.), consd. [para. 22 et seq.].

R. v. Wigman, [1987] 1 S.C.R. 246; 75 N.R. 51; 33 C.C.C.(3d) 97, consd. [para. 22 et seq.].

Minister of Home Affairs v. Fisher, [1980] A.C. 319, refd to. [para. 34, footnote 1].

R. v. Vaillancourt, [1987] 2 S.C.R. 636; 81 N.R. 115; 10 Q.A.C. 161; 68 Nfld. & P.E.I.R. 281; 209 A.P.R. 281; 60 C.R.(3d) 289; 39 C.C.C.(3d) 118, refd to. [para. 38 et seq.].

Manitoba Language Rights Reference, [1985] 1 S.C.R. 721; 59 N.R. 321; 35 Man.R.(2d) 83; 19 D.L.R. (4th) 1; [1985] 4 W.W.R. 385, refd to. [paras. 39, 92].

Jim Pattison Industries Ltd. v. The Queen; Mediacom Industries Inc. et al. v. The Queen (1985), 13 C.R.R. 339 (F.C.T.D.), refd to. [para. 40].

R. v. Berquist and Winters (1985), 66 A.R. 165 (C.A.), consd. [paras. 44, 65].

R. v. Harry (1987), 24 O.A.C. 213; 39 C.C.C.(3d) 499 (C.A.), refd to. [para. 46].

R. v. Harris (1989), 32 O.A.C. 131; 48 C.C.C.(3d) 521 (C.A.), refd to. [para. 46].

R. v. Logan, Logan and Johnson, [1990] 2 S.C.R. 731; 112 N.R. 144; 41 O.A.C. 330; 58 C.C.C.(3d) 391, refd to. [para. 49].

R. v. Rodney (1990), 112 N.R. 167; 79 C.R.(3d) 186 (S.C.C.), refd to. [para. 49].

R. v. Sit (1991), 130 N.R. 241 (S.C.C.), refd to. [para. 49].

R. v. Simpson and Ochs (1988), 81 N.R. 267; 38 C.C.C.(3d) 481 (S.C.C.), refd to. [para. 53].

Reference Re s. 94(2) of the Motor Vehicle Act (B.C.), [1985] 2 S.C.R. 486; 63 N.R. 266; [1986] 1 W.W.R. 481; 23 C.C.C.(3d) 289; 48 C.R.(3d) 289; 69 B.C.L.R. 145; 36 M.V.R. 240; 18 C.R.R. 30; 24 D.L.R.(4th) 536, refd to. [para. 61].

R. v. Ancio (1984), 52 N.R. 161; 2 O.A.C. 124; 10 C.C.C.(3d) 385 (S.C.C.), refd to. [para. 73].

R. v. Paliakiwski (1986), 72 A.R. 106 (C.A.), refd to. [para. 97].

Statutes Noticed:

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 1982, sect. 7 [para. 7 et seq.]; sect. 11(d) [paras. 61, 62]; sect. 24(1) [para. 8 et seq.].

Constitution Act, 1982, sect. 52 [para. 39].

Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1970, c. C-34, sect. 21(2) [para. 48 et seq.]; sect. 213(d) [para. 37 et seq.].

Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, sect. 230(d) [para. 37]; sect. 742(a) [para. 87].

Authors and Works Noticed:

Canadian Encyclopedic Digest (Western 3rd Ed.), title 117, para. 143 [para. 88, footnote 1].

Hogg, Constitutional Law of Canada (2nd Ed. 1985), p. 345 [paras. 42, 90, 91].

Magnet, Constitutional Law of Canada, Cases, Notes and Materials (2nd Ed. 1985), p. 25 [para. 41].

Salhany, Canadian Criminal Procedure (5th Ed. 1989), pp. 475 [para. 13]; 476 [paras. 13, 14].

Sharpe, The Law of Habeas Corpus (1976), pp. 144, 145 [para. 33].

Counsel (Berquist Appeal):

M.N. Rauf, for the appellant;

P.C. Bourque, for the respondent.

Counsel (Winters Appeal):

R.A. Stroppel, for the appellant;

P.C. Bourque, for the respondent.

This appeal was heard before Harradence, Bracco and Stratton, JJ.A., of the Alberta Court of Appeal. The decision of the court was delivered on December 5, 1991, includ­ing the following opinions:

Harradence, J.A. - see paragraphs 1 to 63;

Bracco, J.A. - see paragraphs 64 to 70;

Stratton, J.A. - see paragraphs 71 to 100.