The applicants were charged with possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking and brought an application for a stay of proceedings, alleging their right to be tried within a reasonable time under s. 11(b) of the Charter was infringed.
The total delay from the swearing of the information to the anticipated end of trial was approximately 42 months.
Applying the framework from R. v. Jordan, the court deducted defence delay but found the net delay still exceeded the 30-month presumptive ceiling for superior courts.
The court rejected the Crown's arguments that defence certiorari applications constituted discrete exceptional events and found no transitional exceptional circumstances justified the delay.
The applications were allowed and a stay of proceedings was granted.
