In a criminal prosecution for sexual offences against a very young complainant, the Crown sought admission of several out-of-court statements and drawings made by the child under the principled hearsay exception.
Following a voir dire, the court considered whether the statements met the requirements of necessity and threshold reliability.
The court found that statements made by the child to the mother and later to the grandmother were admissible because the child’s young age and reluctance to testify made them necessary to obtain a meaningful account, and the circumstances indicated sufficient reliability.
Other statements, including a police video interview, additional repetitions, and drawings allegedly created by the child, were excluded due to reliability concerns or limited probative value.
