James Stevenson

The defendant, Alexa Davis, was charged with possessing fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking and possessing proceeds of crime.

She pleaded not guilty to both charges.

The central issue was whether the 23 grams of fentanyl found on her person was for personal use or trafficking.

The court, applying principles of circumstantial evidence and reasonable doubt, found that while there were indicia of both personal use and trafficking, the Crown failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the fentanyl was for trafficking.

The court also found the expert evidence regarding user behaviour to be inadmissible or of limited weight.

Consequently, the defendant was found not guilty on both counts.

This motion for judgment addressed liability and damages following the tragic drowning of Maci Bancroft, a child with Mowat-Wilson Syndrome and global developmental delay, while in the unsupervised care of her father, Nicholas Bancroft.

The plaintiffs, Maci's mother (Shauntal Campeau-Proulx), older sibling (Zayden Bancroft), and Maci's estate, sought damages for negligence.

The court found Nicholas Bancroft solely liable for negligence due to his abandonment of supervisory duties during bath time.

Claims against Sarah Bercier, who was also present, were dismissed as no duty of care was established.

The court also dismissed claims for pain and suffering under the Trustee Act due to lack of evidence of conscious suffering, and a request to declare the judgment non-dischargeable in bankruptcy, deferring this to the bankruptcy court.

Damages for loss of care, guidance, and companionship were awarded to the mother and sibling, with the amounts adjusted to reflect Maci's special needs and limited capacity to provide future care and guidance.

The Office of the Children's Lawyer brought a motion to rescind its appointment as legal representative for a medically fragile infant subject to a child protection proceeding and to remove its assigned counsel.

The child, born with serious cardiac defects, was in the care of the Society and subsequently suffered a life-threatening infection.

A dispute arose between the child's mother and the hospital regarding medical treatment, including a potential do-not-resuscitate order.

The court dismissed the OCL's motion, finding that legal representation remained desirable to protect the child's interests despite the child's inability to provide instructions.

The court awarded costs against the OCL for failing to properly re-evaluate its position in light of changed circumstances.

The appellant was convicted of firearm and drug offences after police found him in the backyard of a townhouse while responding to a 911 call.

The police placed him under investigative detention for trespassing and, after observing suspicious movements indicating he might be armed, conducted a safety search that revealed a loaded handgun and drugs.

On appeal, the appellant argued the safety search was unlawful and the evidence should have been excluded under s. 24(2) of the Charter.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding the safety search was justified by a reasonable belief that officer safety was at stake, and upholding the trial judge's decision to admit the evidence despite minor s. 10 Charter breaches.