Azam MurjiSay
Ask to speak to a lawyer. Say nothing further. At a roadside stop, take any screening test first.
Do not
Do not explain, argue, or try to talk your way out of it. Tell your side to your lawyer, not the police.
If police are holding you
- Right to counsel
The right to a lawyer starts on arrest or detention (section 10(b) of the Charter). Police must usually stop questioning until you have had a fair chance to speak to one. Questioning can resume after that call, and there is no right to have the lawyer in the room for the interview. That call is usually the only advice before questioning, so it has to cover what to say and what not to say.
- Duty counsel
Duty counsel, a lawyer on call to anyone arrested or detained in Ontario, gives free preliminary advice at any hour. Ask the officer for duty counsel, and ask to make the call in private.
- Right to silence
The right to silence holds through the entire process. Stay polite, but you do not have to answer questions. A statement made at the police station rarely helps you.
- What you must still provide
A driver must produce a licence and give a name and address under the Highway Traffic Act. Refusing a Criminal Code demand for a breath, blood or drug sample, or a physical coordination test, is itself an offence. At a roadside stop, a screening test must be given right away. There is no right to call a lawyer first. That right applies after an arrest, before samples at the station. Beyond these, no question has to be answered.
Consultations are confidential.
If you were released on conditions
- Read the release document in full
If police released you, the conditions are in an undertaking. If a justice (a justice of the peace or a judge) released you, the conditions are in a release order. Either way, they bind from the moment of release and continue until the case ends or a court varies them. They can include no-contact terms, address requirements, and curfews.
- Note the first court date
A missed appearance can lead to a warrant and to a separate charge of failing to attend court. If you have already missed a date, contact a lawyer the same day.
- No-contact means no contact
Do not contact anyone the condition names, directly or through someone else. Check the exact wording: it often reaches witnesses and family members as well as the complainant (the person who made the complaint).
Breaking a condition without a lawful excuse is a separate offence. Some breaches go to a judicial referral hearing instead of a new charge. There, a justice can take no action, change the conditions, or order you held in custody.
If police want a statement but have not arrested you
- No obligation before arrest
You do not have to attend a police interview or give a statement before an arrest. The exception is anything the law makes compulsory, such as a breath, blood or drug sample, a licence and identification, or a collision report. Refusing any of them is a separate offence.
- Talk to a lawyer before agreeing to anything
Anything you say can become evidence in the case that follows.
- Turning yourself in, by appointment
Where charges are expected, counsel can ask police to accept a surrender: you attend the station by appointment. Police do not have to agree. If they do, you are still arrested, but at the station rather than at home or at work, and counsel has time to prepare for a bail hearing in case police do not release you.
What happens next
If police hold you, the next step is a bail hearing. If police release you, it is the first court date.
- 01
Arrest and bail
Police either release you with a court date or hold you for a bail hearing. If you are held, police must bring you before a justice (a justice of the peace or a judge) within 24 hours, or as soon as possible if none is available.
- 02
First court date
The first appearance is usually short. The Crown (the prosecution) often hands over disclosure at or after it, and on most charges a lawyer can appear for you.
- 03
Disclosure
The Crown must hand over the relevant evidence, including evidence it does not plan to use, with narrow exceptions such as a police informer's identity.
- 04
Crown pre-trial
Counsel and the Crown discuss the case and whether it can resolve without a trial. A pre-trial before a judge usually follows.
- 05
Trial or resolution
A charge can end in several ways: the Crown withdraws it, the case is stopped (a stay of proceedings), it resolves without a trial, or it goes to trial.
At each of these stages, the defence can test the Crown's case.
Stages of a criminal case →This page is general information about rights and procedure in Ontario. It is not legal advice about any specific case, and reading it does not create a solicitor-client relationship.
Before any statement, call Azam Murji.
In the initial consultation, Azam Murji goes through the charge, the next court date, the likely court process and the options available. Consultations are confidential and carry no obligation to hire Mr. Murji.
Calls and texts go to Mr. Murji himself. The initial consultation is free.