R. v. Wookey (A.)

• Jurisdiction: Ontario
• Court: Court of Appeal (Ontario)
• Judge: Gillese, Watt and Tulloch, JJ.A.
• Citation: (2016), 351 O.A.C. 14 (CA),2016 ONCA 611
• Date: 04 February 2016

R. v. Wookey (A.) (2016), 351 O.A.C. 14 (CA)

MLB headnote and full text

Temp. Cite: [2016] O.A.C. TBEd. AU.004

Her Majesty the Queen (respondent) v. Adam Wookey (appellant)

(C58019; 2016 ONCA 611)

Indexed As: R. v. Wookey (A.)

Ontario Court of Appeal

Gillese, Watt and Tulloch, JJ.A.

August 5, 2016.

Summary:

The accused was convicted of offences under the Food and Drugs Act (FDA) relating to 1-Benzyl-Piperazine (BZP), a substance similar to an amphetamine. The accused appealed. At issue was whether the general definition of "drug" under the FDA applied to substances that were intended for recreational use, as opposed to medicinal or therapeutic uses.

The Ontario Court of Appeal held that BZP fell under the general definition of "drug" in the FDA. The court also concluded that this was not an appropriate case for this court to exercise its discretion to hear a constitutional challenge not raised at trial. Further, the court concluded that the accused's conviction for advertising BZP as a preventative for addiction was supported by the evidence and not based on an unreasonable verdict. Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed.

Civil Rights - Topic 8584

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - Practice - Time for raising Charter issues - See paragraphs 53 to 62.

Food and Drug Control - Topic 1002

Drugs - General - What constitute - See paragraphs 10 to 52.

Food and Drug Control - Topic 1268

Drugs - Offences - Selling food or drug advertised to general public as treatment - See paragraphs 63 to 69.

Practice - Topic 9012

Appeals - Restrictions on argument on appeal - Issues or points not previously raised - See paragraphs 53 to 62.

Counsel:

Joseph S. Wilkinson, for the appellant;

Kevin Wilson, for the respondent.

This appeal was heard on February 4, 2016, before Gillese, Watt and Tulloch, JJ.A., of the Ontario Court of Appeal. The following decision was delivered for the court by Tulloch, J.A., on August 5, 2016.