Jenny X. Chai

The defendant was convicted of twenty-two offences under the Ontario Fire Code for failing to maintain fire safety standards in a multi-unit residential building.

The offences included creating hazards not allowed in the original building design, failing to maintain interconnected smoke alarms, and failing to maintain fire separations and closures.

The defendant had a significant history of prior convictions for similar regulatory offences across multiple properties.

The court imposed a sentence of twenty-one days incarceration and fines totalling $34,000, balancing the goals of general and specific deterrence, public protection, and rehabilitation against the principle of proportionality.

The defendant landlord was charged with 30 counts of violating the Ontario Fire Code at a residential property.

The property, originally a duplex, was illegally converted into a three-unit dwelling with multiple individual room rentals.

The fire inspector found numerous violations, including missing or non-operational smoke alarms, damaged fire separations, and wedged-open fire doors.

The court rejected the defendant's due diligence defence, finding her guilty on 22 counts and dismissing 8 counts where the evidence was insufficient.