Court Site Study of Adult Unrepresented Accused in the Provincial Criminal Courts (Part 2: Site Reports)

Chapter 2: Regina (continued)

2.7 Overall conclusions

2.7.1 Key overall findings

Our key findings with respect to the key questions raised by the study include:

With respect to frequency of self-representation

With respect to impact

2.7.2 General reasons for current unrepresented accused situation.

Interviewees who were able to speculate on the subject suggested the following key reasons for the unrepresented accused situation in Regina (not all were mentioned or agreed to by all):

2.7.3 Solutions suggested by those interviewed in Saskatchewan

Among the solutions offered by individual interviewees were the following (not suggested by or agreed to by all):

APPENDIX A

Supporting Materials

OFFENCE CATEGORIES AND INCLUDED OFFENCES
Code Grouping Name Includes
1 Homicide Any event resulting in death – includes murder (including attempts and conspiracies to commit murder), manslaughter, infanticide, criminal negligence causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, impaired driving causing death, explosive causing death, etc.
2 Sexual Offences Sexual assaults, sexual interference, sexual exploitation, incest, invitation to sexual touching, procurement of minor for sexual purpose, child pornography.
3 Assaults excluding common assault Non-sexual assaults excluding common assault: causing bodily harm, discharge firearm with intent, criminal negligence causing bodily harm, utter threats, hit and run, dangerous driving, kidnapping, abduction, forcible confinement, hostage-taking, criminal harassment, abandoning child, failure to provide necessities of life, arson, explosives.
4 Robbery Robbery, robbery with violence, robbery with weapon, extortion, forcible entry, hijacking.
5 Break and Enter Break and enter, unlawfully in dwelling-house, trespass, possess housebreaking instruments.
6 Impaired Driving Impaired driving, driving with more than 80 mg. blood-alcohol, refusing to provide breathalyzer sample.
7 Common Assault Common assault – summary offence.
8 Drugs excluding simple possession Trafficking, importing, production, sale, laundering of drug proceeds.
9 Weapons All weapons offences except s.244 (discharge firearm with intent). Includes possession of prohibited or unregistered restricted weapon or in place elsewhere than registered, concealed weapon, pointing a firearm, careless use, unsafe storage, altering a weapon, use of weapon in offence, etc.
10 Thefts and Frauds Theft, fraud, mischief, possession of stolen property, forgery, uttering forged document, taking motor vehicle without consent, counterfeiting, laundering of proceeds of crime.
11 Simple possession of drugs Possession of restricted, controlled or prohibited drugs.
12 Administration of Justice Resist arrest, failure to appear/attend, failure to comply, breach of recognizance or other court order, escape custody, obstruct justice, public mischief.
13 Public Order Cause a disturbance, bawdy house, living off avails of prostitution, soliciting, gaming, bookmaking, disorderly house, indecent act, vagrancy, common nuisance.
14 Miscellaneous Criminal Code Undifferentiated attempts, conspiracies, aiding and abetting.
15 Other Federal Statutes Other federal statutes.
16 Provincial or Municipal Laws Provincial statutes, municipal by-laws, Liquor Act, traffic (except those traffic offences in Homicide and Assault).

[18] Granted, percentages of similar magnitudes (also) apply to cases with different types of representation.  However, this does not detract from the importance of the sizeable percentages that apply to unrepresented accused.