Court of Appeal for Ontario

Date: 2019-12-24 Docket: C63011 Judges: MacPherson, Sharpe and Zarnett JJ.A.

Between

Her Majesty the Queen Respondent

and

Mohamed Barkhadle Appellant

Counsel

Mohamed Barkhadle, in person Ian Smith, duty counsel Jessica Smith Joy, for the respondent

Heard: December 11, 2019

Appeal Information

On appeal from the conviction imposed on October 26, 2016 by Justice Heather E. Perkins-McVey of the Ontario Court of Justice.

Appeal Book Endorsement

[1] This appeal turns on the treatment of identity evidence. We are not persuaded that the trial judge erred in that regard.

[2] The complainant did state that her assailant had no facial hair but when pressed on the point, said she was not sure. In any event, the trial judge took this minor discrepancy into account in assessing the complainant's evidence. She found that her identification of the appellant was well supported by the circumstances of the identification and by other confirmatory evidence. In particular, a witness who observed the attack and saw the assailant shortly thereafter in a food court, fully confirmed the details of the assailant's clothing that had been identified by the complainant.

[3] We do not agree that the trial judge placed any significant weight on the certainty or confidence the complainant demonstrated in her identification. While not all the items listed at para. 108 of her reasons were corroborative, some items were corroborative, and others did support the reliability of identification.

[4] Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed.