Police Procedures for Court Attendance

Police Procedures to Compel Attendance in Court

• Police must choose from multiple procedures to compel a person's attendance in court depending on the circumstances
• If a person is not arrested, issuing an appearance notice or summons for court is sufficient.
• If the person is arrested, the police officer can release the person on an appearance notice, summons, or undertaking.
• The police can lay information first and issue a summons or arrest warrant.
• If the person is arrested and not released, they must be brought before a justice
• An appearance notice sets out the name of the accused, offence, date and time of the court appearance, courtroom number, and court location
• For a hybrid or indictable offense, the appearance notice contains information about fingerprinting
• Failure to attend court or fingerprinting is an offense

RICE Factors

• RICE Factors can be considered to determine whether a person should be arrested or released
• RICE factors include Reputation, Identity, Court, and Evidence

Judicial Interim Release

• If police believe that the public interest can be satisfied without arrest, they may issue an appearance notice
• If the police believe the accused will not attend court, or that a RICE factor exists, they may bring the accused before a justice
• An accused person can be released on a form of release, with or without conditions

Judicial Interim Release: When a Person Is Brought Before a Justice

• An accused person has the right to have the validity of their detention determined by way of habeas corpus
• The accused has a procedural right, which is the right to reasonable bail, that protects their liberty
• An accused person can appear before a justice by way of audioconference or videoconference as long as the arrangements are made in advance and satisfactory to the justice
• The technological means used must be satisfactory to the court
• The accused should be brought before a justice within 24 hours of arrest
• Failing to do so can constitute arbitrary detention

Judicial Interim Release: Release with or Without Conditions

• Judicial interim release is when a justice makes a decision about whether or not an accused person should be released on bail, with or without conditions
• The accused doesn't have to enter a plea or for the Crown to make a decision on how to proceed
• The only consideration is whether or not the accused should be released
• The accused can appear in court by way of telecommunications devices
• The accused is presumed innocent
• The accused has the right not to be denied reasonable bail

Show Cause Hearing

• An accused person is entitled to a show cause hearing if they want one, this could be a bail hearing or a show cause hearing
• The Crown must show cause why detention of the accused is justified
• The Crown may present evidence that the accused has a criminal record, or that the accused is charged with other offenses.
• The justice must consider the strength of the Crown’s case, the seriousness of the offence, and the circumstances surrounding how the offence was committed
• The justice must consider each ground on it’s own merit
• There may be concerns related to more than one ground

Evidence at the Show Cause Hearing

• Prosecutors can present evidence that proves the defendant committed the offense
• The rules of evidence are more lenient than at trial
• The Crown may present evidence of a criminal record
• Hearsay evidence is generally admissible at a bail hearing but not at trial
• The Crown may consent to release if the accused can provide sureties

Sureties

• A surety is a person who pledges to pay a certain amount of money to the court if the accused breaches their conditions of release
• The surety must ensure that the accused will abide by each condition
• The surety’s duties continue until the accused is acquitted or found guilty
• If the accused breaches a condition, the Crown may ask the court to note default and collect the amount pledged
• Surety declarations are filled out carefully and filed with the court in advance of the bail hearing, unless the Crown agrees to dispense with it
• A surety declaration must be provided to the court, or the sureties must attend the hearing
• The sureties must provide financial, character, and personal background information
• The sureties cannot have a criminal record
• Sureties can be cross-examined
• Sureties must be able to supervise the accused

Bail

• The bail system relies on the use of sureties
• The reasonableness of bail conditions was considered in the case of R v Zora
• The bail system can cause delays, waste of court time and resources