C. Walpole

The City of Mississauga appealed a stay of proceedings issued by a Justice of the Peace on the basis of an alleged section 8 Charter violation.

The respondent was charged with obstructing an inspector from carrying out an inspection under a municipal bylaw regulating tow truck drivers.

The Justice of the Peace found that the second inspector's examination of the vehicle constituted an unauthorized search in violation of section 8 of the Charter.

On appeal, the court found that the Justice of the Peace erred by failing to apply the proper legal framework established in R. v. Jarvis regarding when Charter protections apply in a regulatory context.

The court determined that section 8 of the Charter had no application to the facts because the bylaw was regulatory in nature, the inspectors had no penal purpose, and the respondent had no reasonable expectation of privacy in a licensed tow truck subject to regulatory inspection.

The appeal was allowed and a new trial was ordered.

The appellant was charged with unsafe lane change under the Highway Traffic Act.

On the trial date, a paralegal acting as his agent appeared and requested an adjournment based on incomplete disclosure.

The adjournment was denied.

The paralegal then withdrew from the proceedings, stating he was instructed to "walk away." The Justice of the Peace entered a conviction without a hearing pursuant to section 9.1(2) of the Provincial Offences Act.

The appellant appealed on two grounds: that the adjournment should have been granted, and that section 9.1(2) did not apply.

The court found the refusal of the adjournment was within the Justice of the Peace's discretion but held that section 9.1(2) could not be applied because the appellant had appeared through an agent and therefore had not "failed to appear" at trial.