R. v. G.F.

(Calgary Court of Justice - Domestic Assault). Unfortunately, while there are a many legitimate domestic assault charges, there are also some police responses and criminal prosecutions that result in innocent parties being charged. To be clear, since police are not usually present at the moment of the event and since Prosecutors, defence lawyers and judges are definitely not present, it is often impossible to say whether one side is right and the other wrong. Having said that, there are some cases where criminal charges have certainly been initiated and triggered when the accused has not committed any criminal offence. Having regard to the evidence in GF's case, it appeared that this was precisely the case. 

GF was charged with domestic assault after a partner called the police. The partner had been consuming alcohol and by a reasonable interpretation of the disclosure, it appeared that police were called more out of spite than a criminal law matter.  For better or worse, right or wrong, whenever there is a police response to a domestic incident, there is a very reasonable likelihood that charges will be laid. It is not unusual for police to interview one side of the dispute, to favour the side of the dispute that alleges criminal wrongdoing and lay a charge. It often seems that the general policy is to let the courts work it out. To be fair, police are often in a difficult position where it may be nearly impossible to sort things out, even after a full, fair and competent investigation. 

GF maintained that the allegations were untrue. GF was also very concerned that the police only interviewed one-half of the allegation (the complainant). To be fair to police, sometimes they choose to interview only one side because once reasonable grounds have been formed (which can occur after only interviewing one side of the case), the accused's Charter protected interests might prevent them from interviewing the accused. This is an unfortunate gap in Canada's criminal law -- where the Charter essentially silences the accused, leaving police with only one-side of the story. This Calgary domestic assault lawyer wishes to make a it very clear that absent new laws designed to permit the accused to speak while at the same time protecting the Charter protected interest, it is almost always in the accused person's overall best interest to remain silent. After all, any statement made by the accused is characterized by Canadian criminal jurisprudence to be "self serving" in nature and therefore, even if the statement is 100% true and exonerates the accused, neither the police nor prosecution are required to accept the truth of the accused's statement. 

In GF's case, the defence immediately approached the Crown about withdrawing the charge. Fortunately for GF, the prosecutor who reviewed the file did so with an open mind and almost assuredly after conducting some additional investigation, the Crown agreed with GF's Calgary criminal lawyer and withdrew the charge. While GF avoided a criminal record, the accused still shouldered legal fee expenses, stress and was forced out of the home while the criminal justice system worked things out. Therefore, the sad reality is that even though GF was almost certainly completely innocent, there was still a form of punishment. 

Cases like GF's illustrate that for all of its positive attributes, Canada's criminal justice system still has flaws. It is important to remember that Canada's criminal justice system is a human system and as such, is subject to human frailty.  

If you are innocent and have been charged with a Criminal Code offence, there is wisdom in hiring a qualified criminal defence lawyer. While criminal defence lawyers may damage your pocket book, a criminal record, especially for somebody who is innocent, far exceeds the cost of a lawyer. Make no mistake, while it is likely relatively rare for innocent people to be convicted in Canada, it happens. Sadly, it can happen even for accused who have received the best representation. There are many criminal defence lawyers in Calgary and throughout Alberta to choose from. Charged with a domestic violence offence? Call a qualified criminal defence lawyer in your jurisdiction. David Chow is a Calgary criminal defence lawyer with over two-decades of experience. He is a former Crown prosecutor, who dedicated his legal career to defending person's accused of crime since 2005.