The appellant challenged his extradition to the United States after a murder conviction and exposure to the death penalty, arguing that surrender without assurances under Article 6 of the Canada-U.S. Extradition Treaty violated ss. 7 and 12 of the Charter.
The majority held that s. 12 did not directly apply to extradition because any punishment would be imposed by the foreign state, and that the proper inquiry under s. 7 was whether surrender would sufficiently shock the Canadian conscience or be fundamentally unacceptable.
Applying that framework, the Court concluded that extradition to a U.S. jurisdiction with substantial procedural protections for brutal murder offences did not violate fundamental justice, and that s. 25 of the Extradition Act validly left the matter to ministerial discretion.
The Court also held that natural justice did not require an oral hearing before the Minister.
The appeal was dismissed and the extradition order confirmed.
