L. Kinahan

The applicant, a police officer charged with trafficking oxycodone, applied for a stay of proceedings under s. 24(1) of the Charter, alleging a breach of his s. 11(b) right to be tried within a reasonable time.

The total delay from the date of the charges to the hearing of the application was approximately 45 months.

The court applied the Morin framework and found that the majority of the delay was attributable to the applicant's actions, including changing counsel multiple times, and waiver by defence counsel.

The court concluded that the remaining institutional and Crown delay fell within acceptable guidelines and dismissed the application.

The applicant sought bail pending appeal following convictions for sexual exploitation and sexual assault against a minor and a custodial sentence of five months.

The court considered the criteria under s. 679(3) of the Criminal Code, including whether the appeal was frivolous, whether the applicant would surrender into custody, and whether detention was necessary in the public interest.

The Crown conceded the second and third criteria but argued the appeal lacked merit.

After reviewing the four proposed grounds of appeal concerning character evidence, alleged misapprehension of GPS evidence, DNA contamination issues, and reliance on a transcript of a police statement, the court concluded none demonstrated arguable merit.

The applicant failed to establish that the appeal was not frivolous and the bail application was dismissed.