How Criminal Charges Work
How Do Criminal Charges Work?
Charges start with the police. The police look into people based on complaints received or what they see. After ‘finishing’ the investigation, the investigating officer will decide whether there is enough evidence to recommend charges. If so, they will write a report setting out the evidence gathered and recommending charges. They send this report to Crown Counsel, which is what prosecutors are called in Canada. So, the police investigate crimes and recommend charges to the Crown.
The "Undertaking"
At this point, the police will commonly give the accused person a piece of paper called an “Undertaking.” This is a legal document setting out the charges being recommended, the anticipated first court date, and conditions limiting your freedom (for example, no contact with certain people). These are binding conditions and you must respect them. It is possible to change the conditions later and we can help you with that.
Substantial Likelihood of Conviction
Once the Crown Counsel Office receives the police report, a prosecutor will review the police report and decide whether there is actually enough evidence to formally charge the person and get court going. What will count as enough evidence for recommending charges? The “legal test” in British Columbia is that there must be a “substantial likelihood of conviction.” So, after the Crown lawyers receive the police report and recommendation, they decide whether to actually approve charges.
What does a “substantial likelihood of conviction mean?” In practice, in many cases, someone just making a complaint against you will be enough to get charged. For example, if someone says that you have sexually assaulted them, the odds are very high that you will be charged. No other evidence or witnesses will be required to get charged.
What Happens If Your Charged?
If you are charged, you will have to go to court to answer to the charge. In our experience, most of our clients who received Undertakings are charged, and most of those charged will first appear in court on the day set out in the Undertaking. Therefore, if you receive an Undertaking, presume that you will be charged and have court on the date stated.
Are You Under Investigation?
You will want to speak with our firm immediately upon learning that you are or may be under investigation. All charges start with the investigation, and all convictions start as a charge. There are important steps that you can take at each stage of the charge approval process. We see too many cases in which the client has made their situation worse during the police investigation.
We deal will all charges, from the least serious to the most serious, from hard-fought trials to remorseful guilty pleas. Call our firm at 250-713-8821 or use this online form so we can discuss your specific situation further. There’s no obligation to pay or retain when you call us.