Courthouse: Ontario Court of Justice Milton
Counsel: Jordan Peach
Date of Judgment: February 12, 2025
Background
An individual called 911 to report that his rental vehicle had just been stolen from the Cedar Springs Motal in Halton Hills by a mutual friend of his – Ms. L. Police located the vehicle shortly after and attempted to initiate a stop; the vehicle did not stop. Ms. L accelerated at a high rate of speed to evade police. Police made contact with the vehicle, but Ms. L did not stop and continued driving through a car dealership, striking one of the parked vehicles. Ms. L continued driving into a park where she drove over a brick seating area and a fence.
The Issue
Ms. L stopped the vehicle at a dead-end road and attempted to flee on foot through wooded area. An officer attempted a gun-point arrest of Ms. L who grabbed the officers arm and continued to flee until she was ultimately taken down and placed under arrest. Ms. L was brought to the hospital to tend to her injuries where she indicated she would refuse to comply with a Drug Recognition Expert demand.
The Strategy
During initial conversations with the Crown, Counsel Jordan Peach was able to convince the Crown not to proceed with the Refusal charges as Officer’s made their demand without properly advising Ms. L of her right to counsel. Following Ms. L’s significant efforts in addressing her addiction and seeking psychiatric assistance, Counsel was able to convince the Crown to amend their original position from 9 months custody to an open position of 4 months custody and probation or an 8-month Conditional Sentence Order on a plea to 3 of the 7 original charges.
Result
During the sentencing hearing, Counsel successfully advocated for a global sentence of 90-days to be served intermittently, followed by probation to permit Ms. L to continue her rehabilitative efforts and further her education.