The Crown brought an application seeking to vacate preliminary inquiry dates scheduled for September 2019 on the basis that amendments to section 535 of the Criminal Code, effective September 19, 2019, eliminated the availability of preliminary inquiries for offences carrying a maximum punishment of less than 14 years imprisonment.
The Crown argued the amendment applied retrospectively to cases already before the court.
The court dismissed the application, holding that the amendment affects the jurisdiction of the court and therefore cannot be applied retrospectively to cases where a request for a preliminary inquiry was made prior to September 19, 2019.
