The accused was charged with uttering a death threat under section 264.1(1) of the Criminal Code after disclosing to a crisis counsellor that he was having thoughts about stabbing his wife during a marital separation.
The Crown argued that because the words were meant to be taken seriously, the accused was guilty.
The court found that while the actus reus of the offence was established (the words objectively conveyed a threat to a reasonable person), the mens rea was not satisfied.
The accused intended his words to be taken seriously for the purpose of seeking help for his anxiety, not for the purpose of intimidating or instilling fear in his wife or any other person.
The accused was acquitted.
