R. v. S.M.

S.M. was charged with one count of speeding and one count of failing to comply with recognizance conditions. Speeding is an infraction against the Ontario Highway Traffic Act that leads to monetary fines and issued demerit points, and failure to comply with recognizance is a criminal offence that exposes the accused to potential jail time. S.M.’s recognizance conditions stemmed from an incident several months earlier when he was charged with driving over the influence for having more than 80mgs of alcohol in his body. From that earlier incident, S.M. was under a condition to not operate or have care or control of a motor vehicle while his case was proceeding through the court system. When he was later pulled over for going 82km in a 60km zone, the officer learned S.M. was currently on a recognizance of bail from the earlier incident and by driving he was directly breaching the condition to not operate or have care or control of a vehicle. S.M. was arrested and held in jail overnight for a bail hearing. Failure to abide by recognizance conditions often results in jail time if the accused is convicted. Under the Criminal Code, if the Crown proceeds by indictment an accused can be liable to up to two years in jail. To be found guilty of breaching a recognizance of bail, the Crown has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused was bound by a recognizance, that the accused breached one or more of the conditions, and that the accused intended to breach one or more of their conditions. Before going to trial, Jonathan Pyzer successfully convinced the Crown that S.M. sincerely believed his license had been reinstated and that he was no longer under recognizance conditions. The Crown withdrew both charges against S.M. when they realized they did not have a reasonable prospect of conviction; it was no longer likely they could prove S.M. intended to breach one of his conditions. If Jonathan Pyzer had not been successful in convincing the Crown to withdraw the speeding charge, S.M. was facing penalties that were more than just a fine under the Highway Traffic Act. Getting a speeding ticket in Ontario will affect your insurance premiums for three years from the date you paid your speeding ticket or from the date you were found guilty in court. Penalties also include demerit points and license suspensions.