Accusé devant le tribunal

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• < Procédure et pratique
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Right to Self-Representation

• Right to Self-Representation

Accused's Obligation to be Present in Court

• Obligation of Accused to be Present During Proceedings

Video-link Appearance

See also: Procuring the Attendance of a Prisoner

Accused Absconding

Where the accused is required to attend an appearance for a summary offence and does not, the court may issue a warrant for their arrest.

From Preliminary Inquiry or Trial

Accused absconding during trial

475 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, where an accused, whether or not he is charged jointly with another, absconds during the course of his trial,

(a) he shall be deemed to have waived his right to be present at his trial, and

(b) the court may

(i) continue the trial and proceed to a judgment or verdict and, if it finds the accused guilty, impose a sentence on him in his absence, or

(ii) if a warrant in Form 7 [formes] is issued for the arrest of the accused, adjourn the trial to await his appearance,

but where the trial is adjourned pursuant to subparagraph (b)(ii), the court may, at any time, continue the trial if it is satisfied that it is no longer in the interests of justice to await the appearance of the accused.

Adverse inference

(2) Where a court continues a trial pursuant to subsection (1) [accusé en fuite pendant le procès], it may draw an inference adverse to the accused from the fact that he has absconded.

Accused not entitled to re-opening

(3) Where an accused reappears at his trial that is continuing pursuant to subsection (1) [accusé en fuite pendant le procès], he is not entitled to have any part of the proceedings that was conducted in his absence re-opened unless the court is satisfied that because of exceptional circumstances it is in the interests of justice to re-open the proceedings.

Counsel for accused may continue to act

(4) Where an accused has absconded during the course of his trial and the court continues the trial, counsel for the accused is not thereby deprived of any authority he may have to continue to act for the accused in the proceedings.
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 475; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 185(F), c. 1 (4th Supp.), s. 18(F).
[annotation(s) ajoutée(s)]

– CCC (CanLII), (Jus.)

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For the purpose of s. 475, "abscond" refers to the avoidance of trial "for the purpose of impeding or frustrating" the trial. Merely failure to attend is not enough. The court must be satisfied that the accused "absented himself... for the purpose of impeding or frustrating the trial, or with the intention of avoiding its consequences."

The court is permitted to proceed to sentencing in the absence of the accused, where there is sufficient information to do so.

The finding that the accused absconds is not permitted to be used as an aggravating factor to sentencing but can remove mitigating factors.

Section 475 does not violate section 7 or section 11(d) right to a fair trial.

Absconding Accused

Accused absconding during inquiry

544 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, where an accused, whether or not he is charged jointly with another, absconds during the course of a preliminary inquiry into an offence with which he is charged,

(a) he shall be deemed to have waived his right to be present at the inquiry, and

(b) the justice

(i) may continue the inquiry and, when all the evidence has been taken, shall dispose of the inquiry in accordance with section 548 [ordonnance de subir son procès ou de libération, procédure et conséquences], or

(ii) if a warrant is issued for the arrest of the accused, may adjourn the inquiry to await his appearance,

but where the inquiry is adjourned pursuant to subparagraph (b)(ii), the justice may continue it at any time pursuant to subparagraph (b)(i) if he is satisfied that it would no longer be in the interests of justice to await the appearance of the accused.

Adverse inference

(2) Where the justice continues a preliminary inquiry pursuant to subsection (1) [conséquence de la fuite de l'accusé à l'enquête préliminaire], he may draw an inference adverse to the accused from the fact that he has absconded.

Accused not entitled to re-opening

(3) Where an accused reappears at a preliminary inquiry that is continuing pursuant to subsection (1) [conséquence de la fuite de l'accusé à l'enquête préliminaire], he is not entitled to have any part of the proceedings that was conducted in his absence re-opened unless the justice is satisfied that because of exceptional circumstances it is in the interests of justice to re-open the inquiry.

Counsel for accused may continue to act

(4) Where an accused has absconded during the course of a preliminary inquiry and the justice continues the inquiry, counsel for the accused is not thereby deprived of any authority he may have to continue to act for the accused in the proceedings.

Accused calling witnesses

(5) If, at the conclusion of the evidence on the part of the prosecution at a preliminary inquiry that has been continued under subsection (1) [conséquence de la fuite de l'accusé à l'enquête préliminaire], the accused is absent but their counsel is present, the counsel shall be given an opportunity to call witnesses on behalf of the accused, subject to subsection 537(1.01) [questions relatives aux limites de pouvoir et témoins], and subsection 541(5) [dépositions de témoins d'enquête] applies with any modifications that the circumstances require.

R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 544; 1994, c. 44, s. 55; 2019, c. 25, s. 246.
[annotation(s) ajoutée(s)]

– CCC (CanLII), (Jus.)

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Deceased Accused

Generally, a prosecution will terminate by the Court declaring the matter "abated" where the accused dies regardless of the stage of proceedings.

There are some exceptions permitted for pending appellate matters.

The Court of Appeal maintains jurisdiction over an appeal where the accused has died. It is in their discretion to either declare the appeal "abated" or consider it on its merits. Discretion should be exercised where the court is satisfied that:

1. there are serious grounds of appeal and the verdict being appealed carries significant consequences for the party seeking to continue the appeal; or
2. for any reason where it is in the interests of justice to do so.

The "interests of justice" component will be the predominant consideration and should subsume the other elements.

The "interests of justice" test requires consideration of "all relevant circumstances."

The "overwhelming number" of appeals where the accused dies should result in abatement.

"Scarce judicial resources" should rarely be a "disqualifying consideration."

Fresh evidence leading to factual innocence may be sufficient to be in the interests of justice.

Factors

The court should consider to varying degrees the following non-exhaustive list of factors:

1. whether the appeal will proceed in a proper adversarial context;
2. the strength of the grounds of the appeal;
3. whether there are special circumstances that transcend the death of the individual appellant/respondent, including:
   1. a legal issue of general public importance, particularly if it is otherwise evasive of appellate review;
   2. a systemic issue related to the administration of justice;
   3. collateral consequences to the family of the deceased or to other interested persons or to the public;
4. whether the nature of the order which could be made by the appellate court justifies the expenditure of limited judicial (or court) resources to resolve a moot appeal;
5. whether continuing the appeal would go beyond the judicial function of resolving concrete disputes and involve the court in free-standing, legislative-type pronouncements more properly left to the legislature itself.

Special Issues of Accused Appearances

Right to Face Accusers

The "right to face one's accusers is not in this day and age to be taken in the literal sense...it is simply the right of an accused to be present in court, to hear the case against him and to make answer and defence to it."

This is a qualified right and can be limited by the availability of witness screens, closed-circuit video testimony, video link testimony, and other statutory and common law protections of witnesses.

Use of Restraints in Court

There is a presumption that the accused should not be in restraints while in court. The crown Bears the burden to establish that the use of restraint is reasonable.

Sitting Position of Accused

• Sitting Position of the Accused at Trial

Right to Representation

A judge must make adequate inquiries into whether the accused wants to be represented by counsel. He should be "thorough" in his explanation of the importance of exercising the right. Failure to do so may infringe the accused's Charter rights under s. 7.

Organizations as Accused

An accused who is an organization must appear by counsel or agent. Failure of counsel or agent to attend permits the court to order an ex parte trial.

See Also

Other Parties

• Role of the Defence Counsel
• Role of the Trial Judge
• Role of the Victim and Third Parties
• Role of Law Enforcement
• Role of the Crown