The defendant was charged with driving while holding a handheld communication device contrary to section 78.1(1) of the Highway Traffic Act.
During a traffic stop, the officer seized one of the defendant's two driver's licences and returned it to the Ministry of Transportation.
The defendant brought a constitutional motion alleging a breach of section 8 of the Charter and seeking a remedy under section 24(2).
The court denied the motion, finding that while the officer's conduct in seizing the licence may have been questionable, the nexus between the alleged breach and the evidence for the charge was too tenuous and remote to warrant a judicial stay.
The court emphasized that a judicial stay is only appropriate in the clearest of cases and that the societal interest in hearing the merits of the case outweighed the alleged breach.
