K. L. Hawke

The accused, a youthful first-time offender, pled guilty to robbery and failing to stop for police after acting as the getaway driver in a violent pawn shop robbery.

Although the accused did not personally use a firearm or inflict the severe injuries sustained by the victims, he was a party to the robbery.

The court determined a fit sentence was 4 years in custody, but applied a 1.5-year Duncan/Marshall reduction due to harsh pre-trial custody conditions involving frequent lock-downs and triple bunking.

After applying Summers credit, the accused was sentenced to a further 9 months and 18 days in custody, followed by 18 months of probation.

The accused was charged with impaired operation and refusing a demand for a urine sample following a motor vehicle collision.

The court excluded the accused's roadside utterances under section 7 of the Charter, finding they were statutorily compelled under the Highway Traffic Act, leading to an acquittal on the impaired operation charge.

On the refusal charge, the court found the Crown failed to prove a valid demand because the evaluating officer did not complete the 12-step drug influence evaluation (omitting the breath test) and lacked objectively justifiable reasonable grounds to believe the accused was impaired by drugs, noting the officer fell prey to confirmation bias.