Marguerite J. MacNeil

The accused appealed a sexual assault conviction on the basis that his court-appointed interpreter, when called as a defence witness, failed to provide full and contemporaneous interpretation of his own testimony and part of an exchange with the trial judge.

The Court held that s. 14 of the Charter protects an accused's right to interpretation that is continuous, precise, impartial, competent and contemporaneous whenever the case is being advanced.

The Court rejected any requirement to prove actual prejudice at the breach stage, found no valid personal waiver, and held that the Criminal Code curative provisos do not apply to an infringement of the constitutional right to interpreter assistance.

Because the breach occurred during material trial evidence on identification, the conviction was quashed and a new trial ordered.

The appellant, a journalist, sought access to audio and video tapes that had been admitted as exhibits in a criminal trial resulting in a murder conviction.

The conviction was later overturned on appeal because the tapes were found to have been obtained in violation of the accused's Charter rights and were ruled inadmissible.

The Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the appeal, holding that the privacy interests of the acquitted person outweighed the public right of access to exhibits judicially determined to be inadmissible against him.