Court File and Parties
COURT FILE NO.: 18-0552
DATE: 2019 04 11
ONTARIO
SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE
BETWEEN:
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN Respondent
– and –
RAJA DOSANJH Applicant
COUNSEL:
F.M. Kelly, for the Crown
J. Greenspan and B.J. Greenshields, for the Applicant
HEARD: April 10, 2019
LEMON J.
RULING RE: DISCLOSURE No. 1
RESTRICTION ON PUBLICATION
A Non-Publication Order is made pursuant to ss. 645(5) and 648(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada that publication of this ruling is prohibited.
The Issue
[1] The defence has brought a pre-trial motion to exclude Crown evidence as a result of breaches of Mr. Dosanjh’s rights pursuant to s. 8 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In response to part of that application, the Crown has filed an affidavit of the investigating officer, D/Cst. Welsh. As a result of that affidavit being filed, the defence seeks an application for:
[D]isclosure of all recorded communications (written or electronic) involving D/Cst. Welsh and the Crown Attorney, concerning the infotainment system warrant, from the preliminary hearing up to and including the date the affidavit was filed on March 5, 2019. The request included, but was not limited to, the following information in possession of the Guelph Police Service and/or in the possession of the Crown Attorney: handwritten notes; emails; electronic notes; and all draft versions of the March 5, 2019 affidavit.
[2] Although the defence did not file a notice of application, this paragraph, taken from its factum, is agreed to be the request by the defence.
[3] I have now heard argument from both sides.
[4] In brief, the defence submits that they are entitled to all of that information, without vetting. In the alternative, however, pursuant to R. v. Dixon [1988] 1 S.C.R. 244 and R. v. Chu 2016 SKCA 156, [2016] S.J. No. 638, those records should be provided to me for my review. In response, the Crown submits that the application, for a variety of reasons, should be dismissed. However, the Crown does not object to providing the material to me for my review. I am advised that the information in issue can be available to me by April 11, but no later than April 12, 2019.
[5] Pursuant to the initial request by the defence, the Crown provided a variety of documentation to the defence. At my request, that material was provided to me and filed as Exhibit “A” on this application.
[6] Both parties relied on a variety of principles to support their position. However, they are in a vacuum to me since I do not know the documentation in issue.
[7] Accordingly, pursuant to Dixon and Chu, I have ordered that the Crown provide the requested information for the period June 7, 2018 to March 5, 2019 to me, for my review.
[8] With that documentation, I will then be able to consider both parties’ submissions on the basis of the material in issue.
“Justice Lemon”
Lemon J.
Released: April 11, 2019
COURT FILE NO.: 18-0552
DATE: 2019 04 11
ONTARIO
SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN Respondent
– and –
RAJA DOSANJH Applicant
RULING RE: DISCLOSURE No. 1
Lemon J.
Released: April 11, 2019