Court File and Parties
Court: COURT OF APPEAL FOR ONTARIO Date: 2024-07-09 Docket: COA-23-CR-1245
Between: His Majesty the King, Respondent And: James Lachine, Appellant
Before: Lauwers, Trotter and Paciocco JJ.A.
Counsel: Joe Wilkinson, appearing as duty counsel Akshay Aurora, for the respondent
Heard and released orally: July 8, 2024
On appeal from: the sentence imposed on September 13, 2023 by Justice Scott G. Pratt of the Ontario Court of Justice.
Reasons for Decision
1Mr. Lachine was convicted of a serious aggravated assault and was sentenced to three and a half years. Duty counsel questions whether he was given sufficient Downes credit.
2The trial judge dealt with this issue in his reasons, and his sentence came in below the Crown’s request. We infer that sufficient Downes credit was given. This is a matter on which this court must defer, absent an error in principle in terms of the amount of such credit, and no such error has been identified.
3This is not one of those exceptional cases where post-sentencing rehabilitation efforts warrant an additional reduction in sentence, although we commend Mr. Lachine for these efforts which will work to his benefit when he is released.
4The appeal is dismissed.
"P. Lauwers J.A." "Gary Trotter J.A." "David M. Paciocco J.A."