The Criminal Process (LAW385H1S)

This course will examine the criminal process in Canada in light of competing demands placed on it for efficiency, fairness and equality. It will employ a criminal and legal process with a focus on the role of and interaction of different institutions including the police, prosecutors, courts and legislatures.

The course will offer a detailed examination of the public police including its structure, oversight and powers. The effectiveness of the Charter in controlling police conduct including racial profiling, entrapment and strip searches will be examined, as will various accountability measures including criminal investigations and prosecutions of the police, civil lawsuits, police complaints and disciplinary proceedings. The de-tasking of policing and the development and implementation of community safety and well-being plans will also be assessed. 

Select stages of the criminal trial process will also be examined. They include charge screening and the exercise of prosecutorial discretion, bail, preliminary hearings, plea bargaining, guilty pleas, jury selection and the creation of pre-sentencing reports including Gladue and Impact of Race and Cultural Assessments. Appeals and the correction of wrongful convictions, including the role of the proposed Miscarriage of Justice Review Commission, will be examined.