The applicant, Dominic Mazza, charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine, brought an application to exclude evidence of cocaine found in his vehicle.
He argued his arrest was unlawful, the subsequent search of his vehicle was unlawful, and his Charter right to counsel was violated by its suspension and subsequent denial.
The court found that the police lacked reasonable and probable grounds for arrest, rendering the arrest and incidental search unlawful.
The court also found that the initial suspension of the right to counsel was unjustified, and the subsequent failure to facilitate counsel after the suspension was lifted constituted a further violation.
Applying the R. v. Grant factors, the court determined that the seriousness of the Charter-infringing conduct and the impact on the accused's rights outweighed society's interest in adjudication on the merits, leading to the exclusion of the cocaine evidence.
