R. v. D.H.

(Calgary, Q.B.).  DH was charged with second degree murder in Calgary in relation to a stabbing incident during a fight in a dwelling house.  In Canadian criminal law, second degree murder is the second most serious offence. If convicted, it carries an automatic life sentence with no opportunity for parole for at least 10 years.  The "life sentence" means that even if paroled at some point (and there is no guarantee of that), the parolee remains under the supervision of a parole officer for the remainder of his or life. DH's defence was self defence. There was a preliminary inquiry in Calgary. A preliminary inquiry is essentially a criminal law discover procedure used to primarily to determine whether the evidence is sufficient to warrant a trial. The threshold for committal to trial at a preliminary inquiry is  low.  The Crown need only demonstrate that there "is some evidence upon which a reasonable jury, properly instructed, could convict". Though preliminary inquiry is mainly a procedure for committal to trial, it is also a very valuable tool for assessing frailties in the case and deficiencies in disclosure.  DH's case is a good example of one where both the Crown and the accused benefited from the opportunity to hear evidence at preliminary inquiry; for as a result of frailties in the Crown's case exposed at the preliminary stage, the client was offered and accepted a plea to the lesser included offence of manslaughter. It is important to remember that sometimes events happen in life that are on the fringe of control.  Moral culpability for manslaughter varies from near accident to near murder. DH was  sentenced to 3 years; meaning that his case was much closer to near accident than murder.  DH has served his time and put his life in order.  

David Chow is a Calgary homicide lawyer who has successfully defended this most serious crime. David is not a lawyer who takes every murder case offered; rather, he only accepts the number of homicide cases that he can do well. David is a Calgary criminal lawyer who believes that this cases require maximum attention, all the time and as such, is of the view that to effectively defend murder, defence counsel cannot handle many homicide cases on a yearly basis and should not, whenever possible, run homicide cases back-to-back. The stakes are too high. Life in jail is a huge responsibility. If you have been charged with murder, manslaughter or any homicide case call David Chow. He is a criminal lawyer in Calgary who offers a free consultation. He defends cases throughout the Province and in British Columbia, the Territories and Saskatchewan.