The Crown appealed as of right from a Quebec Court of Appeal decision that set aside the accused's convictions for aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, and possession of a weapon for a purpose dangerous to the public peace, and ordered a new trial.
The trial judge had rejected the accused's self-defence claim under s. 34 of the Criminal Code, finding that he acted out of vengeance rather than to defend himself.
The Supreme Court held that the Court of Appeal majority erred by reassessing the evidence without identifying a palpable and overriding error in the trial judge's analysis, and failed to defer to the trial judge's privileged position in assessing credibility.
The convictions were restored.
