Patricia Brown

Following a consent order appointing the Public Guardian and Trustee (PGT) as guardian of the respondent's property, the PGT sought its costs of the application.

The respondent opposed, arguing that Rule 57 of the Rules of Civil Procedure should apply to deny costs.

The court held that section 8 of the Public Guardian and Trustee Act provides statutory authority for the PGT to deduct its reasonable fees and expenses from the respondent's property, and this provision prevails over Rule 57.

The court found the PGT's requested costs of $21,173.38 to be reasonable and ordered them payable from the respondent's funds.

The offender pleaded guilty to arson with disregard for human life after setting fire to a neighbour's house with his brother.

The fire caused $150,000 in property damage and destroyed the home.

The court found the offender's moral blameworthiness was significantly reduced due to his severe cognitive limitations, functioning at the 1st percentile.

Balancing the gravity of the offence with the offender's reduced culpability, the court imposed a two-year conditional sentence followed by three years of probation.

The offender was convicted of second-degree murder following a brutal, unprovoked attack on a 75-year-old woman walking on a trail.

The offender, who had consumed marijuana and psilocybin, inflicted severe head injuries that ultimately caused the victim's death 14 months later.

The Crown sought a parole ineligibility period of 14-17 years, while the defence sought the minimum 10 years.

The court weighed the severe aggravating factors of the savage attack on a vulnerable victim against the offender's youth, lack of criminal record, and prospects for rehabilitation, ultimately setting parole ineligibility at 13 years.

The accused was charged with second degree murder after brutally beating a 75-year-old woman on a walking trail.

The accused admitted to causing the victim's death but argued he lacked the requisite intent due to extreme intoxication from consuming magic mushrooms and marijuana.

The court rejected the defence of non-mental disorder automatism, finding no psychiatric evidence to support it.

The court concluded that the accused's coordinated actions before, during, and after the attack, along with the targeted and severe nature of the blows, proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he intended to cause bodily harm that he knew was likely to cause death and was reckless as to whether death ensued.

The accused was found guilty of second degree murder.

The offender, an 18-year-old international university student, was convicted of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old highly intoxicated female student in a university residence.

The court considered the significant physical and psychological impact on the victim, the offender's lack of a prior criminal record, and the collateral immigration consequences of a custodial sentence.

The court determined that a sentence of 26 months' imprisonment was appropriate, emphasizing denunciation and deterrence for a serious crime of violence against a vulnerable victim.

The accused brought a Charter application at the commencement of his trial seeking to exclude a firearm, ammunition, and cocaine seized by police during a street stop.

The court found that the police arbitrarily detained the accused without reasonable suspicion, violating his s. 9 Charter rights.

This unlawful detention also resulted in breaches of his s. 8 right against unreasonable search and s. 10(b) right to counsel.

However, applying the Grant framework under s. 24(2), the court concluded that the police acted in good faith and the evidence was highly reliable and essential to the prosecution.

The application to exclude the evidence was dismissed.