Canada’s criminal laws on impaired driving and other driving offences have been dramatically revamped. The changes took effect on December 18, 2018.

Here are some highlights:

• Police can demand you to provide bodily samples at the roadside to test for drugs
• Police can demand you to provide a breath sample at the roadside apparently even without a reasonable suspicion you have alcohol in your body
• Legal limit for alcohol drops from over 80 mg in...Read More

WE CAN HELP GET YOU A PARDON

If you have a criminal record, contact us now for help with a pardon (record suspension). What’s the point of a pardon? Keep reading…

WHAT DOES A PARDON OR RECORD SUSPENSION DO?

A pardon, now known as a “record suspension,” seals your criminal record.

If you get a record suspension, any search of the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) will not show that you have a...Read More

A man is seated in the front passenger seat of a car. A clear plastic bag containing 6.2 grams of crack cocaine rests in plain view on the centre console between him and the driver.

Is that enough evidence to find the passenger guilty of possession of cocaine?

That’s the question a Superior Court judge wrestled with in a recent case.

Test for possession of drugs

Allen Ali had been committed to trial...Read More

The criminal law is a blunt instrument. It should be used with restraint.

This is a principle that should impel the Crown Attorney to drop the case against Ken Pagan who appears in Toronto’s Old City Hall court on November 24 on a charge of mischief for allegedly hurling a beer can onto left field during a recent Blue Jays playoff game.

Prosecution not in public interest It’s a principle that the...Read More

Routine traffic stop A man exits a bar and drives away. Police pull him over for a sobriety check.

There’s no odor of alcohol and the driver says he had nothing to drink.

Police check his driver’s licence and vehicle documentation. All in order.

Odor of unburnt marijuana

While standing at the driver’s window, police smell a strong odor of “unburnt marijuana.”

Police caution him “in regards to possession of a controlled substance”...Read More

Canada’s decision to legalize marijuana in 2017 marks a stark break from the country’s zero-tolerance drug policy and has prompted discussion about further liberalization. To minimize drug-related deaths, disease and crime, possession of small amounts of all drugs should be treated as a public-health issue, not a criminal one.

Drugs and crime tied

Drugs and crime are tied. Without adequate education, regulation and treatment opportunities, illicit drugs are abused and often act...Read More