Delroy Desmond sought a stay of charges (firearm trafficking, possession) under s. 11(b) of the Charter, alleging unreasonable delay.
The total delay was 40 months, exceeding the 30-month presumptive ceiling for Superior Court.
The court found that while there were periods of defence unavailability, the primary cause of the delay pushing the case over the limit was the Crown's inadvertent disclosure of an unredacted Information to Obtain (ITO) revealing a confidential source.
This necessitated defence counsel's withdrawal and a new trial date.
The court ruled this was not an exceptional circumstance excusing the Crown, as it was within Crown control and avoidable.
Consequently, the s. 11(b) right was violated, and a stay of proceedings was ordered.