Andre Rady

The accused, Sean Lypaczewski, pleaded guilty to communicating with a person believed to be underage for sexual purposes, possessing child pornography, and making child pornography.

The court considered aggravating factors, including the accused's position as a teacher and the high moral blameworthiness, and mitigating factors, such as genuine remorse, no prior criminal record, and significant rehabilitation efforts.

The court imposed a sentence of 12 months' imprisonment, concurrent on all counts, followed by two years of probation with conditions, a DNA order, a 20-year Sex Offender Information Registration Act compliance, and a 10-year prohibition on employment/volunteering with minors and internet use restrictions.

The defendants brought a pre-trial application challenging the sufficiency of the Information to Obtain a Search Warrant (ITO) for the Thorndale premises, arguing a breach of their s. 8 Charter rights against unreasonable search and seizure.

They sought to exclude the seized evidence under s. 24(2) of the Charter.

The court found that the ITO provided a sufficient evidentiary basis for the search warrant, concluding that the totality of circumstances, including frequent visits by the target's vehicle to the premises, its movements before and after suspected drug transactions, and counter-surveillance driving, established a credibly-based probability of evidence of a Controlled Drugs and Substances Act offence.

Therefore, no s. 8 Charter violation occurred.

Even if there had been a breach, the court determined that the evidence would not be excluded under s. 24(2) of the Charter, as the police conduct was not serious, and the real and reliable evidence was of significant probative value, outweighing the impact on the accused's interests.

The application was dismissed.

Dr. Grochowski, an emergency room physician, sued Adam Young for defamation over online comments published by The Sarnia Observer.

Young's comments alleged Grochowski prescribed highly addictive medication without close inspection.

The court found the statements defamatory, rejecting Young's defenses of justification, fair comment, and responsible communication.

The court awarded Dr. Grochowski $12,500 in general damages plus prejudgment interest, and $2,000 in costs for a pleading amendment.

The defendants brought a motion seeking leave to amend their Statement of Defence and to disqualify the plaintiff's counsel due to an alleged conflict of interest.

The plaintiff opposed both requests.

The court granted leave for the defendants to amend their Statement of Defence, finding the proposed amendments legally tenable and noting the early stage of proceedings precluded prejudice.

However, the court dismissed the request to remove plaintiff's counsel, deeming it premature and based on unwarranted speculation, emphasizing the litigant's right to counsel of choice and the high threshold for disqualification.