The appellant Crown appealed a decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal which had set aside the respondent's sexual assault conviction and ordered a new trial.
The Court of Appeal majority had found the trial judge erred by using text messages exchanged between the complainant and the accused as prior consistent statements to corroborate the complainant's evidence, by failing to hold a voir dire to determine their relevance, and in the approach to the W.(D.) analysis.
The Supreme Court, by majority, allowed the appeal and restored the conviction, adopting the reasons of the dissenting judge in the Court of Appeal.
Justices Côté and Brown dissented and would have dismissed the appeal substantially for the reasons of the Court of Appeal majority.
