The appellant challenged the seven-year mandatory minimum sentence for importing narcotics after pleading guilty to importing cocaine.
The Court held that s. 12 of the Charter protects against punishments that are grossly disproportionate, and that the mandatory minimum in s. 5(2) of the Narcotic Control Act was unconstitutional because it would inevitably capture reasonably foreseeable cases involving much less serious conduct and require cruel and unusual punishment.
The Court rejected reliance on prosecutorial discretion to save the provision and held that the infringement was not justified under s. 1 because the means chosen impaired the right more than necessary.
The appeal was allowed and the matter was remitted for reconsideration of sentence.
