Court of Appeal for Ontario

CITATION: R. v. Goncalves, 2012 ONCA 139

DATE: 20120302

DOCKET: C53708

MacPherson, Armstrong and Juriansz JJ.A.

BETWEEN

Her Majesty the Queen

Applicant/Appellant

and

Henrique Goncalves

Respondent

Counsel:

Brendan Gluckman, for the appellant

Amit Thakore, for the respondent

Heard: March 2, 2012

On appeal from the sentence imposed on April 28, 2011 by Justice Frances P. Kiteley of the Superior Court of Justice, sitting without a jury.

APPEAL BOOK ENDORSEMENT

[1] The appellant’s principal submission is that the trial judge’s conclusion that the appellant “was a street level seller who was an addict” was completely unsupported by the evidence.

[2] In our view, substantial deference must be accorded to a sentencing judge, and especially to her factual conclusions. Although we acknowledge that there was a good deal of evidence to support a conclusion that the appellant was a higher-level supplier, we cannot say that the trial judge’s conclusion is entirely unsupported by the evidence.

[3] The appeal is dismissed.