The appellant was charged with sexual offences and convicted after the trial judge reserved judgment for approximately nine months following the conclusion of evidence and argument.
The appellant sought a stay of proceedings on the basis that the delay between charges and verdict was unreasonable under s. 11(b) of the Charter.
The Supreme Court held that while s. 11(b) applies to verdict deliberation time, the Jordan presumptive ceilings do not extend to that period.
The applicable test is whether verdict deliberation time took markedly longer than it reasonably should have in all of the circumstances, assessed in light of the presumption of judicial integrity.
Applying this test, the appellant failed to establish a breach of s. 11(b), given that the trial and most of the deliberation occurred before Jordan was released.
