Richard R. Darrah

The offender pleaded guilty to aggravated assault after severely beating a sex worker and stealing her car.

The Crown sought 3.5 years imprisonment, while the defence sought a conditional sentence order.

The court found a conditional sentence order unavailable due to the severity of the offence, which warranted a penitentiary term.

After weighing the offender's significant rehabilitation efforts and lack of prior record against the viciousness of the unprovoked attack, the court imposed a sentence of 34.5 months imprisonment, accounting for pre-sentence custody credit.

Olavo Williams-Cordeiro was convicted of careless driving causing death in the context of a street race on Highway 403, where his vehicle was driven at speeds between 141-193 km/hr in a 100 km/hr zone.

The race culminated in a fatal collision involving a motorcycle driven by Mr. Chen.

The court considered aggravating factors including the street racing context, the defendant’s troubling driving record with multiple speeding convictions post-incident, and the need for general and specific deterrence.

Mitigating factors included the defendant’s remorse, youth, difficult upbringing, and positive family support.

The court imposed a custodial sentence of 9 months, followed by 18 months probation with conditions including a prohibition on driving, and a four-year driving prohibition.

The accused brought a motion to stay prosecution on the grounds that his Charter rights under section 11(b) (right to be tried within a reasonable time) were violated.

The accused was charged with impaired driving, driving with blood alcohol over 80 mg, and dangerous driving.

The total delay from charge to trial was approximately 15 months, with 10 months of institutional delay.

The court applied the four-factor test from R v. Morin and found that while the delay was not desirable, it did not constitute a violation of the accused's Charter rights.

The court found minimal prejudice to the accused and balanced this against society's strong interest in having the matter tried on the merits.

The motion was dismissed.

The defendant was charged with operating a motor vehicle in a dangerous manner contrary to s. 249 of the Criminal Code.

Two Ontario Provincial Police officers observed the defendant's vehicle traveling southbound on Highway 400 over approximately 15 kilometres and 8 minutes.

The officers testified to observing repeated instances of speeding (up to 140 km/hr), tailgating at distances of one-half to two car lengths, and unsafe lane changes on a wet roadway at night.

The defendant testified that he was keeping pace with traffic at 110-120 km/hr and had only passed two vehicles.

The court accepted the officers' evidence and found the defendant guilty, determining that the totality of the driving conduct constituted a marked departure from the standard expected of a reasonably prudent person.

The Crown appealed a conditional sentence imposed on the respondent for an assault where he struck the victim with a beer bottle and slashed the victim's throat.

The Court of Appeal found the conditional sentence manifestly unfit, emphasizing that denunciation and deterrence were paramount for such a grave offence.

The appeal was allowed, and the sentence was varied to ten months' imprisonment, taking into account the five months the respondent had already spent on house arrest, followed by three years of probation.