Fehr on Pretrial Sanctions

Colton Fehr (Simon Fraser University) has posted Deterring Rights Litigation: R v Basque ((2022) 78 Criminal Reports (7th) 138) on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

 

The New Brunswick Court of Appeal’s decision in R v Basque —which was recently granted leave to appeal by the Supreme Court —illustrates a concern with subjecting offenders to pre-trial driving prohibitions and then failing to credit the time served towards their sentences. The author argues that this practice deters litigants from litigating rights issues as the main consequence for driving offences - a driving prohibition - will be prolonged if the litigant chooses to plead not guilty. This approach is inconsistent with the right to a fair trial.