On May 20, 2009, CCLA special counsel Andrew Lokan (Paliare Roland) appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Nasogaluak, which addressed courts’ powers to grant sentence reductions to people who have had their Charter rights violated. The case involved a defendant who had been subjected to excessive force during the course of an arrest. The sentencing judge had reduced his punishment because of the hardship he had already suffered, drawing objections and an appeal from the government. In its submission, CCLA argued that courts should, where appropriate, be permitted to reduce the sentences of offenders who have had their rights violated. Moreover, in CCLA’s view, this remedy should not be affected by the presence of a mandatory minimum sentence.
To see CCLA’s factum before the Supreme Court of Canada click here.
