The accused brought a section 11(b) Charter application seeking a stay of proceedings for unreasonable delay.
The accused was charged with operating a motor vehicle with greater than 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood on October 23, 2010.
The trial was initially scheduled for August 12, 2011, but was not reached due to an overbooked court list.
The matter was then adjourned to November 30, 2011.
The court found that the total institutional delay of approximately 11 months, just outside the 8-10 month guideline established in R. v. Morin, combined with actual prejudice to the accused (including doubled legal fees and emotional stress from two trial dates), constituted a violation of the accused's section 11(b) rights.
The court granted the stay of proceedings.