Angela L. McLeod

The accused, B.M., pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault on E.N., committed between November 2015 and November 2016, when E.N. was 15 years old and B.M. was 33-34.

The incidents involved fellatio and vaginal intercourse, occurring at the family business where B.M. was a long-time employee and E.N. worked.

The court found B.M. to be in a position of trust and engaged in grooming behavior.

The Crown sought a custodial sentence of 2 years less one day, while the defence proposed 12-15 months.

The court, emphasizing the gravity of sexual offenses against children and the high moral culpability of the offender, imposed a sentence of 36 months (3 years) custody, along with a 10-year s. 109 order, a DNA order, a 20-year SOIRA order, and a s. 743.21 order, exceeding the Crown's submission.

This decision addresses the sentencing of two unrelated first-time offenders, Paul Kingma and Michael Rozak, who pleaded guilty to firearms offences.

For Kingma, who was found to be an "utterly irresponsible gun owner" due to careless storage of multiple firearms and failure to report a lost handgun, the court imposed a suspended sentence with 12 months probation and 5-year firearm prohibitions, emphasizing denunciation and general deterrence despite potential employment loss.

For Rozak, whose careless use of a firearm was linked to alcohol addiction and who had undertaken significant rehabilitation, the court granted an absolute discharge with 5-year firearm prohibitions, finding his moral culpability reduced and that rehabilitation outweighed the need for a conviction, considering severe collateral employment consequences.

The decision highlights the balancing of sentencing principles, including proportionality, denunciation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and collateral consequences, in the context of firearms offences and the public interest in responsible gun ownership.

The defendant, Mickey Berube, pleaded guilty to six counts of robbery involving convenience stores and a gas station, committed between May and July 2021.

The robberies involved brandishing a knife, wearing a mask, and escalating threats.

The sentencing hearing was delayed for a Gladue Report.

The Crown sought a global sentence of 6 years, while the defence sought a remanent sentence of 2 years plus one day.

The court calculated presentence custody credit at the Summers rate of 1.5:1.

Aggravating factors included weapon use, vulnerable victims, masking, planning, and escalating violence.

Mitigating factors included guilty pleas, no prior record, drug addiction relapse, the spree nature of the offences, and remorse.

The court considered the defendant's background, including his Indigenous identity, unstable upbringing, and mental health issues, as detailed in the PSR and Gladue report.

Applying sentencing principles of restraint, deterrence, denunciation, and totality, and considering the range articulated in R. v. Asif, the court imposed a total sentence of 1485 days, resulting in a remanent sentence of 753 days after enhanced presentence custody credit, along with ancillary orders.

Sentencing for possession of child pornography following a guilty plea.

The offender possessed 276 unique images depicting very young children, including infants and toddlers, in highly intrusive and violent sexualized abuse, and had sent one image to an adult companion with a message expressing a desire to replicate the conduct.

The court held that it was unnecessary and potentially revictimizing for the sentencing judge to view a sample of the images where the facts were undisputed and a detailed police categorization report had been filed.

Applying the governing sentencing principles for child pornography offences and the conditional sentence framework, the court found that denunciation and deterrence predominated and that the offender's lack of insight made a community sentence inappropriate.

A sentence of 400 days' custody, followed by 24 months' probation and ancillary orders, was imposed.

The offenders, both Indigenous women, pled guilty to assaulting police officers during an arrest for public intoxication.

One offender also pled guilty to a subsequent breach of undertaking.

The court applied the Gladue framework to determine the appropriate sentences.

The first offender, who had a dated criminal record and was the primary instigator, received a 270-day conditional sentence order.

The second offender, who was on probation at the time of the assault and subsequently breached her undertaking, was deemed unsuitable for a conditional sentence and received a total of 135 days in custody.

This is a sentencing decision for Andrew Kirkpatrick, who pleaded guilty to one count of assault with a weapon (a pellet gun) arising from a domestic incident.

The accused shot the complainant, his intimate partner, in the neck while intoxicated.

The Crown sought a custodial sentence of 180 days, 18 months probation, and a 10-year s. 109 order, which the court ultimately imposed.

The court considered mitigating factors such as the guilty plea and completion of a Partner Assault Response Program, alongside significant aggravating factors including prior convictions, the dangerous nature of the assault, lack of genuine remorse, and the domestic violence context.

The decision discusses the application of sentencing principles, including denunciation and deterrence, and the criteria for conditional sentence orders under the Criminal Code.

The defendant pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and two counts of luring.

The Crown sought a significant custodial sentence, while the defence sought a conditional sentence.

The court considered aggravating factors such as the nature of the child pornography and the profound impact on victims, and mitigating factors including the guilty plea and engagement in treatment.

The court rejected a conditional sentence, emphasizing the seriousness of the offences and the harm caused to child victims, aligning with the principles from R. v. Friesen.

The defendant pleaded guilty to failing to stop after an accident causing death, contrary to section 320.16(3) of the Criminal Code.

The victim was struck and killed, and the defendant subsequently removed her purse from his vehicle and discarded it, delaying her identification and family notification.

The Crown sought a 12-month custodial sentence, while the defence sought a conditional sentence.

The court considered mitigating factors such as the guilty plea and lack of criminal record, and aggravating factors including the disposal of the victim's purse, prior Highway Traffic Act convictions, and the substantial victim impact.

The court found that a conditional sentence would not meet the principles of denunciation and deterrence, imposing a 12-month custodial sentence, followed by 18 months probation, a 10-year section 109 order, a DNA order, and a 5-year driving prohibition.

The accused, a young person, was charged with sexual assault.

The court found that the complainant did not subjectively consent to the sexual activity beyond initial kissing.

The accused relied on the complainant's silence, passivity, and ambiguous conduct, leading the court to conclude he was reckless or wilfully blind to the lack of consent.

The defence of mistaken belief in consent failed as the accused did not take reasonable steps to ascertain consent, particularly as the sexual activity escalated and the parties were unfamiliar.

The court emphasized that "testing the waters" or relying on a lack of resistance does not constitute reasonable steps.

The accused was convicted of sexual assault.

This is a sentencing decision for Maryah Capri, who was convicted of prolonged and multi-faceted fraud against the Ontario Works Program, receiving over $104,000 between 2012 and 2016 by falsely claiming to be a single parent.

The court considered her difficult childhood, substance abuse, mental health issues, and criminal record.

The Crown sought 6-9 months custody, while the defence sought a conditional sentence.

The court denied a conditional sentence, finding it inappropriate given the severity, duration, and complexity of the fraud, the offender's lack of full acceptance of responsibility, and concerns about compliance and community safety.

Capri was sentenced to 180 days custody followed by 36 months probation, with the Crown's request for a prohibition order under section 380.2 of the Criminal Code denied.

Sentencing for a first offender who pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography after police found 152 child pornography images among 1308 images of interest on four devices.

The court emphasized that denunciation and deterrence are primary sentencing objectives for child pornography offences, but applied the conditional sentence framework under s. 742.1 and the governing jurisprudence to assess whether this was an exceptionally rare case.

Significant mitigating factors included the guilty plea, remorse, collateral consequences, military service, ongoing counselling, mental health issues, and the unusually small volume of child pornography compared to many reported cases.

The court held that the pandemic, rehabilitative progress, and community-based treatment made a conditional sentence appropriate and imposed 270 days' custody to be served conditionally, followed by 24 months' probation and ancillary orders.

This is a sentencing decision for an offender convicted of aggravated assault and breach of undertaking, stemming from a violent domestic incident.

The victim sustained severe facial injuries requiring multiple surgeries.

The Crown sought a 24-month penitentiary sentence, while the defence argued for a conditional sentence, highlighting the offender's rehabilitation efforts.

The court considered the principles of denunciation and deterrence, particularly in the context of intimate partner violence, and aggravating factors including the victim's vulnerability and the offender's prior domestic assault conviction.

Balancing these with the offender's rehabilitation, the court imposed a lengthy conditional sentence, emphasizing that such a sentence can still achieve punitive and denunciatory objectives.

Timothy Joslin's application to renew his firearms licence was refused by a firearms officer due to public safety concerns, stemming from his history of impaired driving convictions and perceived disregard for safety rules.

Joslin referred this refusal to the Ontario Court of Justice for review under the Firearms Act.

The court, applying a deferential standard of reasonableness to the firearms officer's decision, found that the officer was justified in refusing the licence renewal.

The court reiterated that the burden was on Joslin to demonstrate that the refusal was "not justified" and confirmed that the officer could consider information beyond the five-year period specified in the Act.

The Chief Firearms Officer's decision was upheld.

The Indigenous offender pled guilty to possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking, simple possession, and breach of a release order.

The court considered Gladue factors, noting the offender's history of intergenerational trauma, addiction, and efforts toward rehabilitation.

Recognizing the offender as a low-level addict trafficker and factoring in exceptionally punitive pre-sentence custody conditions due to COVID-19, the court imposed a global sentence of 4 years, less enhanced credit for pre-sentence custody.

The young person was charged with firearm offences after police conducted a high-risk takedown of a vehicle in which he was a rear passenger.

The court acquitted the young person, finding the Crown failed to prove he had knowledge or control of the firearm located on the floor of the vehicle.

The court also found serious, flagrant Charter breaches by police, including arbitrary detention, excessive force, failure to provide rights to counsel, and a warrantless search, concluding the evidence would have been excluded under section 24(2) regardless.

The accused pleaded guilty to defrauding her small business employer of $45,222.26 over a two-and-a-half-year period.

The accused, who was responsible for accounts receivable and payable, transferred the funds into her own accounts and her child's account across 73 transactions.

The court rejected the defence's request for a conditional sentence, emphasizing the paramountcy of denunciation and general deterrence in breach of trust employee frauds.

The accused was sentenced to 12 months in jail, 36 months of probation, and ordered to pay a fine in lieu of forfeiture.

This sentencing decision concerns Andrew Wyvill, convicted of sexual interference with a 14-year-old complainant who was highly intoxicated and often unconscious.

The court detailed three instances of sexual violation and the profound physical and psychological impact on the victim and her family.

While acknowledging the offender's guilty plea and community support, the court found numerous aggravating factors, including the victim's extreme vulnerability, the repeated nature of the assaults, the offender's lack of understanding of consent, and his continued denial of guilt.

The Crown sought a custodial sentence of 2 years less one day, while the defence proposed a conditional sentence.

Applying the principles of denunciation and deterrence, and guided by recent Supreme Court of Canada jurisprudence emphasizing increased sentences for child sexual abuse, the court rejected the defence's submission as "inappropriate and palpably offensive" and imposed a sentence of 30 months custody, along with a DNA order, a 10-year s. 109 order, and a 20-year SOIRA order.

Sentencing following guilty pleas to sexual interference against a very young child in a public washroom and possession of a very large collection of child pornography.

The court applied the guidance in Friesen on the gravity of sexual offences against children and reviewed Ontario authorities emphasizing denunciation and deterrence for child pornography offences.

Exceptionally punitive presentence custody conditions during repeated institutional lockdowns were treated under the Marshall clarification of Summers and Duncan, with 1.5:1 statutory credit applied and the harsh conditions considered as mitigation in fixing sentence.

The joint submission on the sexual interference count was accepted, concurrent custodial terms were imposed, and lengthy ancillary orders followed.

The offender, Shamar Sealy, pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon, theft under $5000, and two counts of assault simpliciter, involving minor victims.

The court considered aggravating factors, including the vulnerability of victims, recording of an assault, use of a prohibited weapon, and threats, alongside mitigating factors such as a guilty plea, lack of adult convictions, a gap in his record, and mental health/substance abuse issues that he has since addressed.

Applying sentencing principles, including the attenuated importance of deterrence and denunciation for mentally ill offenders, and considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on conditions of imprisonment, the court determined that a conditional sentence was appropriate.

The accused pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography under s. 163.1(4) of the Criminal Code and faced a contested sentencing between a custodial term and a conditional sentence.

The court reviewed Ontario child-pornography sentencing authorities, emphasized that denunciation and deterrence are ordinarily primary, and accepted that real jail is usually imposed absent exceptional circumstances.

Applying s. 742.1 and the conditional sentence jurisprudence, the court found an extremely rare case based on the pandemic, extensive rehabilitation, low risk of reoffending, military service, and related mental health issues.

A conditional sentence of 729 days followed by 24 months' probation was imposed, together with ancillary orders, but no s. 110 order.