Court of Appeal for Ontario

Date: 2025-06-20
Docket: M56020 (C61906)
Panel: Monahan, Dawe and Madsen JJ.A.

Between

His Majesty the King
Respondent (Respondent)

and

Melissa Hart
Applicant (Appellant)

Appearances:
Melissa Hart, acting in person
Evan Akriotis, for the respondent

Heard: In writing

Reasons for Decision

[1] On April 2, 2015, the applicant was found guilty in the Ontario Court of Justice of operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit. The applicant’s summary conviction appeal was dismissed on March 7, 2016, and her application for leave to appeal to this Court was dismissed on October 4, 2016.

[2] In April 2024, the applicant filed an application to re-open her application for leave to appeal from the decision of the summary conviction appeal court. That application was heard by this panel on June 14, 2024, and dismissed.

[3] In February 2025, the applicant filed a second application to re-open, arguing that in our June 2024 decision we had overlooked fresh evidence. That application was heard on April 24, 2025, again by this panel, and was subsequently dismissed.

[4] The applicant has now filed a third application to reopen, arguing that there has been a material change of circumstances since our April 2025 reconsideration of this matter. It came before the panel as an application in writing.

[5] This third application to re-open is entirely without merit. The applicant advances the same Charter arguments that her counsel ultimately did not pursue at trial, but that the applicant relied on at her summary conviction appeal and her first application for leave to appeal to this court in 2016; before this panel in her first application to reopen her leave application in June 2024; and again before this panel in her application for reconsideration in April 2025.

[6] The applicant has not pointed to anything that would qualify as a material change in circumstances. She advises that she applied in October 2023 for ministerial review under s. 696.1 of the Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46. This is not a material change in circumstances, since it preceded both of her previous applications to reopen the dismissal of her leave application. In any event, it has no bearing on the merits of her leave application.

[7] This is now Ms. Hart’s fourth appearance before a panel of this court seeking leave to appeal a 2015 summary conviction. The applicant is treating the appellate process as a never-ending revolving door. Finality, and the need to prevent this court’s process from being abused, demands a conclusion to this matter.

[8] Therefore, in addition to dismissing the application to re-open, we prohibit the applicant from filing any documents with this court pertaining to her April 2, 2015 summary conviction for driving with a blood alcohol content over the legal limit without the permission in writing of a member of this court, based on a written request by the applicant no more than three pages in length without any additional material. Counter staff are instructed not to accept any material from the applicant that is inconsistent with this direction: see R. v. Tran, 2017 ONCA 482, at para 5.

“P.J. Monahan J.A.”
“J. Dawe J.A.”
“L. Madsen J.A.”