When someone is accused of a crime they may feel defeated. While it is of course not desirable to face a criminal charge, those who do should know that a charge is not the same thing as a conviction. Instead, it is one of many phases that together make up a criminal trial.
In the course of the process there are opportunities to fight the charges and either lessen the impact of the charges, have them thrown out completely or be found not guilty. For assistance in identifying those opportunities and taking action upon them, most find it beneficial to work with a criminal defence lawyer.
A 20-year-old man was acquitted of the criminal charges of unlawful possession of a firearm after the search that uncovered the handgun on him was deemed to be illegal. The illegality of the search led to the evidence of the gun being found inadmissible and the Crown virtually without a case. In the course of being arrested the man was illegally searched, beaten and wrongly arrested.
A Toronto judge determined that the police engaged in misconduct in finding the officers on the scene discussed the incident and then wrote up their notes regarding it, together, raising “the spectre of collusion.” In addition, the arresting officer’s testimony that she could see he had something in his pocket was disproved when the accused put on the jacket he was wearing at the time and placed the gun in his pocket. When he did, it was impossible to tell that there was in fact anything in the pocket.
There is no question that law enforcement officers play an important role in keeping residents of Toronto safe. In doing their job however there is no room for the police to disregard an individual’s rights.
