D.S. Sederoff

Hazare Roman was initially charged with possession of fentanyl and cocaine for trafficking.

The fentanyl charge was dismissed via a directed verdict.

Roman subsequently pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine for trafficking.

The Crown and defence made a joint submission for a 9-month prison sentence plus probation, agreeing on 20 days credit for pre-trial custody.

They disagreed on the credit for 4 months of house arrest and 18 months of curfew.

The court accepted the 9-month sentence, granting an additional 2 months and 10 days credit for the house arrest period (totaling 3 months credit), resulting in a 6-month custodial sentence, followed by one year probation, a DNA order, and a 10-year firearms prohibition.

The applicant, charged with importing fentanyl and possession of false identity documents, brought two pre-trial applications.

First, she sought to sever the drug charges from the false identity document charges.

The court granted the severance, finding a real risk of prejudice and no factual or legal nexus between the two sets of charges.

Second, she sought disclosure of police records relating to other packages of fentanyl sent by the same exporter to different addresses in Ontario.

The court dismissed this application, holding that the records were third-party records requiring an O'Connor application, not first-party Stinchcombe disclosure.

The applicants, convicted of producing over 500 marihuana plants, brought a constitutional challenge against the two-year mandatory minimum sentence under s. 7(2)(b)(v) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

They argued the provision violated s. 12 of the Charter.

The court found that while the sentence was not grossly disproportionate for the applicants themselves, it was grossly disproportionate for reasonably foreseeable hypothetical offenders, such as those involved in regulatory licensing infractions.

The court concluded the provision violated s. 12, was not saved by s. 1, and declared it of no force or effect.