Case information
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35180
Ajitpal Singh Sekhon v. Her Majesty the Queen
(British Columbia) (Criminal) (As of Right)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2014-02-24 | Appeal closed | |
| 2014-02-21 | Formal judgment sent to the registrar of the court of appeal and all parties | |
| 2014-02-21 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2014-02-20 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, CJ LeB Abe Ro Mo Ka Wa, The appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for British Columbia (Vancouver), Number CA039578, 2012 BCCA 512, dated December 19, 2012, heard on November 8, 2013, is dismissed, McLachlin C.J. and LeBel J. dissenting. Dismissed |
|
| 2013-11-21 | Transcript received, 57 pages | |
| 2013-11-08 | Judgment reserved OR rendered with reasons to follow | |
| 2013-11-08 | Acknowledgement and consent for video taping of proceedings, all parties consented | |
| 2013-11-08 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2013-11-08, CJ LeB Abe Ro Mo Ka Wa Judgment reserved |
|
| 2013-11-08 | Respondent's condensed book, (Book Form), filed in Court | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-11-08 | Appellant's condensed book, (Book Form), filed in Court | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
| 2013-10-28 | Notice of appearance, Martha M. Devlin, Q.C. and Chris Greenwood will appear on behalf of the Respondent. Mrs. Devlin will be presenting oral arguments. | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-10-10 | Notice of appearance, Amended 2013-10-30, re.: Eric V. Gottardi will now appear in place of Mr. Peck and Kathleen Bradley will be present at the hearing. | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
| 2013-08-23 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2013-08-21 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2013-11-08 Judgment reserved |
|
| 2013-06-10 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2013-06-05 | Respondent's book of authorities, Completed on: 2013-06-05 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-06-05 | Respondent's factum, Completed on: 2013-06-05 | Her Majesty the Queen |
| 2013-04-11 | Appellant's book of authorities, Completed on: 2013-04-11 | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
| 2013-04-11 | Appellant's factum, Completed on: 2013-04-11 | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
| 2013-03-27 | Appellant's record, (5 volumes), Completed on: 2013-03-27 | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
| 2013-01-25 | Letter advising the parties of tentative hearing date and filing deadlines (Notice of appeal – As of right) | |
| 2013-01-17 | Notice of appeal, Completed on: 2013-01-17 | Ajitpal Singh Sekhon |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Sekhon, Ajitpal Singh | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Her Majesty the Queen | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: Sekhon, Ajitpal Singh
Counsel
Eric V. Gottardi
Kathleen M. Bradley
610 - 744 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6C 1A5
Telephone: (604) 669-0208
FAX: (604) 669-0616
Email: rpeck@peckandcompany.ca
Agent
2600 - 160 Elgin St
Box 466 Station D
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 233-1781
FAX: (613) 563-9869
Email: brian.crane@gowlingwlg.com
Party: Her Majesty the Queen
Counsel
Chris Greenwood
Federal Prosecution Service
900 - 840 Howe Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6Z 2S9
Telephone: (604) 775-7473
FAX: (604) 666-1599
Agent
160 Elgin Street
12th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
Telephone: (613) 957-4770
FAX: (613) 941-7865
Email: francois.lacasse@ppsc-sppc.gc.ca
Summary
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Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
Criminal law - Expert evidence - Admissibility - Whether the trial judge erred in admitting and relying on the expert evidence of the police officer.
Mr. Sekhon was convicted of importation and possession for the purposes of trafficking of 50 kilos of cocaine that was seized by border officers who found it hidden in the compartment of a pickup truck he tried to drive from the United States into Canada. The case against Mr. Sekhon was entirely circumstantial, and the only issue at trial was whether he knew of the cocaine in the truck, such that it was in his custody and control. On appeal, Mr. Sekhon argued among other things that the trial judge should not have admitted or relied on the expert evidence of a police officer who testified that in his experience as an investigator he had never encountered a blind courier and that individuals tasked with importing controlled substances in such large amounts would be part of a closely knit organization and would know what commodity they were importing because it would be factored into the fee they would have negotiated. The majority of the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. Newbury J.A., dissenting, would have allowed the appeal and ordered a new trial. In her view, the expert evidence should never have been admitted or relied upon because it was anecdotal, and even if relevant, was highly prejudicial.
Lower court rulings
Provincial Court of British Columbia
143511-1
Appellant convicted of importation and possession for the purposes of trafficking of 50 kilos of cocaine
Court of Appeal for British Columbia (Vancouver)
CA039578, 2012 BCCA 512
Appeal dismissed
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
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Factums on appeal
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
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