Arielle Elbaz

Following a jury conviction for possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, the accused retained new counsel and brought an application for a mistrial prior to sentencing.

The application alleged ineffective assistance by trial counsel for failing to bring a Charter application to challenge the search warrant.

The court dismissed the application, holding that a trial judge is functus officio once a jury verdict is recorded, and the proper remedy for an ineffective assistance claim at this stage is an appeal.

The offender pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking and one count of possession of heroin for the purpose of trafficking.

The offences involved large quantities of drugs and occurred while the offender was on bail for the first offence.

The court imposed a total sentence of six years imprisonment, emphasizing denunciation and deterrence.

The offender received enhanced credit for pre-sentence custody, plus an additional nine months credit for harsh conditions experienced during frequent lockdowns at the Toronto South Detention Centre, resulting in a remaining sentence of 19 months and 3 weeks.

The offender was convicted of possession of 64.1 grams of crystal methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking and possession of a weapon dangerous to the public peace.

He was arrested in an apartment stairwell while intoxicated and brandishing a knife.

The Crown sought a 4-year sentence, emphasizing denunciation and deterrence, while the offender sought a sentence under 4.5 months to preserve immigration appeal rights.

The court sentenced the offender to 4 years imprisonment, less 19.5 months credit for pre-sentence custody, finding that his addiction and the circumstances required a sentence long enough to facilitate rehabilitation and protect the public.

The offender pleaded guilty to trafficking in a substance held out to be cocaine after selling his schizophrenia medication to an undercover officer.

The Crown sought a 90-day intermittent sentence, while the defence requested probation due to the offender's mental health issues.

The court found that deterrence and punishment assume less importance for mentally ill offenders and that medical intervention was the only effective form of deterrence.

The court suspended the passing of sentence and imposed two years of probation with conditions focused on psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation.

The appellant was arrested for possession of oxycodone for the purpose of trafficking, and his truck was seized as offence-related property.

The assignee of the conditional sales contract for the truck, Ally Credit Canada Limited, applied for its return under s. 490 of the Criminal Code.

On the application date, the appellant's counsel's assistant requested an adjournment, which the application judge refused, ordering the truck returned to Ally.

The appellant appealed the order.

The Summary Conviction Appeal Court dismissed the appeal, finding that the application judge did not err in refusing the adjournment and that Ally had established it was entitled to possession of the truck due to the appellant's breach of the contract.