The accused was charged with historical sexual abuse in February 2023.
Following a hung jury and mistrial in October 2025, a retrial was scheduled for June 2026, resulting in a total delay of 40 months.
The accused brought an application under s. 11(b) of the Charter alleging unreasonable delay.
The court found that even after deducting defence delay and the period of the mistrial, the net delay exceeded the 30-month presumptive ceiling.
The court rejected the Crown's argument that the remaining delay was justified by the COVID-19 pandemic backlog, finding that the pandemic's effect had largely dissipated by the time the trial dates were set.
The application was granted and the proceedings were stayed.
