P. Seymour

The applicant brought a Charter application alleging breaches of his s. 8 and s. 9 rights following his arrest and the search of his home, seeking exclusion of a firearm under s. 24(2).

Police had intercepted communications indicating a firearm transaction and followed the seller to the applicant's residence.

When police attempted to arrest the men in the driveway, they fled into the house.

The court found the arrest and search incident to arrest were lawful, and the warrantless entry into the home was justified by hot pursuit and exigent circumstances.

The application was dismissed.

The accused brought a Charter application in a blended voir dire and trial seeking exclusion of a loaded firearm discovered during a warrantless vehicle search following a traffic stop.

The court found the police stop under the Highway Traffic Act was a racially motivated pretext rather than a legitimate highway safety stop, rendering the detention and subsequent arrests for careless driving and failure to identify unlawful.

The search of the vehicle was also unconstitutional because it was not truly incidental to arrest and amounted to a broad exploratory search unrelated to the alleged traffic offences.

Applying the Grant framework, the court held that the Charter breaches—racial profiling, unlawful arrest, and an unjustified search—were serious and deliberate, and that admitting the firearm would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.

The firearm and ammunition were excluded under s. 24(2) of the Charter, and the accused was acquitted as the Crown could not prove knowledge and control of the firearm.