A. Jodouin

The accused brought an application to strike his guilty plea, arguing it was not fully informed and voluntary because he did not believe he had any other option but to plead guilty.

The Crown consented to the application.

After hearing brief testimony from the accused, the court found that the accused did not subjectively fully understand his options.

The court struck the guilty plea and adjourned the matter to set a trial date, noting the accused's waiver of his section 11(b) Charter rights for the period from the plea to the conclusion of the trial.

The accused brought a Rowbotham application seeking a stay of proceedings until state-funded counsel was provided after Legal Aid Ontario denied funding.

The court considered whether the accused had established the three elements required for state-funded counsel: exhaustion of legal aid remedies, inability to retain counsel, and that counsel was essential to a fair trial.

The court found that the anticipated drug trafficking trial was relatively straightforward, involved limited witnesses, and did not raise complex legal issues.

The accused also failed to provide adequate financial disclosure or demonstrate reasonable efforts to secure private funding for counsel.

The application was dismissed.