R. v. J.R.D.

(Strathmore, P.C. - Drug Trafficking). JRD was charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine. JRD's case was difficult because after police raided the family home and seized a substantial quantity of cocaine (a schedule 1 substance), JRD was interviewed and admitted to trafficking drugs.  At the time of the charges the sentencing options for JRD were limited. Though there were no minimum penalties in the Criminal Code of Canada, conditional sentence orders (jail in the community) was not a legal sentence and the Alberta Court of Appeal had set a 3 year starting point sentence for small scale commercial trafficking of cocaine. 

As JRD's case progressed through Court, it became clear that a change of law was eminent.  JRD's pled guilty and as a result of a very fair and reasonable position taken by the Prosecutor, the case was decided after the Liberal Government changed the Criminal Code to permit conditional sentence orders.  JRD was one of the first recipient's of a CSO as a result of this change of law. 

David Chow is a Calgary criminal lawyer and drug lawyer who defends multi-kilo drug trafficking offences. There are many paths to defending a drug case. Sometimes, as with the case of JRD, the best path to avoiding actual jail for an accused to take advantage of an early guilty plea.