Ottawa assault lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth defend many clients charged with assault, spousal / domestic assault, assault causing bodily harm, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon.

Call an Ottawa assault lawyer at 613-233-4529 or email info@ottawalawfirm.ca so we can use our experience to help you.

This is Serious!

Here are the maximum sentences that can be imposed if you are convicted of assault:

Assault-  imprisonment up to five years

Assault causing bodily harm- imprisonment up to ten years

Assault with a weapon –imprisonment up to ten years

Aggravated assault – imprisonment up to fourteen years

There is a lot at stake!

If you are convicted, you could have problems crossing the U.S. border, obtaining a professional license (such as a real estate agent or mortgage broker) and have other job problems.

How can an Ottawa Defence Lawyer help?

• An Ottawa defence lawyer will study the Crown brief (the evidence they collect from the police).
• An Ottawa defence lawyer will identify who the Crown witnesses are and investigate their backgrounds.  In many cases we engage private investigators with great success.
• An Ottawa defence lawyer will interview witnesses you suggest or who we uncover who may provide a different perspective on the Crown’s version of events.
• An Ottawa defence lawyer knows how to review the disclosure (the Crown’s evidence, primarily from the police) to detect if your Charter rights were violated during the process leading up to your arrest.
• For example, if you gave a statement to police that the Crown wants to use against you, your Ottawa defence lawyer will scrutinize how that statement was obtained to ensure your rights were not violated.  If your rights were violated, the Crown may not be able to use your statement against you.
• At Auger Hollingsworth, our criminal defence lawyers ae prepared to take an aggressive stand during the pretrial stage to help you avoid the expense and worry of a trial by pressing the Crown to withdraw charges where they have not reasonable prospect of conviction.

What Should You Do NOW?

• DO NOT tell your family and friends the “whole story” leading to your arrest.  Keep the details to yourself and your Ottawa criminal lawyer.
• DO make notes of what happened leading up to your arrest and provide them to your Ottawa defence lawyer.  Make these notes asap after you are released from the police station while the events are still fresh.
• Do follow your Ottawa criminal lawyer’s advice.  If your lawyer wants you to go for anger management, drug or alcohol assessment or other psychological investigations, DO IT.  Your efforts can only help you.
• DO comply with any conditions of release imposed by the police carefully.  Your criminal defence lawyer’s bargaining power with the Crown decreases significantly if you are charged with a breach of your terms of release.
• DO stay clear of the person who you are alleged to have assaulted.  If it is essential that you communicate with the other person, your defence lawyer can take steps to get permission.

If you are looking for a criminal defence lawyer to help you with your charges of assault, contact a Ottawa Criminal Defence Lawyer at 613 233-4529 or by emailing info@ottawalawfirm.ca.

Assault is defined in Section 265(1) of the Criminal Code.  A person commits assault when:

(a) without the consent of another person, he applies force intentionally to that other person, directly or indirectly;

(b) he attempts or threatens, by an act or gesture, to apply force to another person, if he has, or causes that other person to believe on reasonable grounds that he has, present ability to effect his purpose; or

(c) while openly wearing or carrying a weapon or an imitation thereof, he accosts or impedes another person or begs.

Assault Explained:

The terminology and word used in the Criminal Code can be confusing.  It is often difficult to decipher precisely which actions qualify as criminal offenses.  It is important to break the section down, to make sure you get it.

First, assault can occur when force is applied directly or indirectly to another person, without their consent.  The term “force” does not necessarily mean that the contact has to be violent.  Mere touching without the other person’s consent may be deemed assault.

Directly applying force refers to direct person-to-person touching. For example, under this definition, punching, pushing or kicking someone would constitute direct forms of assault.

Indirectly assaulting someone involves using another object or means other than person-to-person contact.  Examples of indirect assault may include throwing a rock or spitting.  These are just some of the types of actions that can be defined as assaults, there are many more that may fall into the assault category.

When an allegation is made that you are abusing your spouse or intimate partner you may be charged with domestic assault.  Domestic assault, also known as spousal assault,  is the use of physical force with the intent to harm a spouse, loved one or cohabitant.   Domestic assault /  spousal assault is a very serious crime in Canada.

If you are currently being investigated for, or have been accused of or formally charged with this type of assault, it is in your best interest to retain a knowledgeable criminal defence lawyer.  A criminal defence lawyer will strengthen your case by using his experience, skill, education and superior knowledge of Canada’s criminal law when defending your case before a judge in the Ontario courts.

If you are convicted of domestic assault, you may face jail time, restitution, fines, probation, counselling and a criminal record.   A criminal record impacts your ability to travel and work in certain types of positions.

Domestic Violence Lawyers

At the Auger Hollingsworth, our lawyers will provide you with excellent criminal defence of your assault charge or charges.  We have represented people just like you on many domestic violence cases that have resulted in favourable conclusions.   Use our  Free Consult form, or call us at 613 233-4529, to book a no obligation consultation.

If you are in Ottawa, Eastern Ontario or elsewhere in Canada, you should beware that people often think, incorrectly, that criminal findings of guilt before adulthood have no impact once a person becomes an adult. A young person’s record does not cease to exist just because they turn 18, and if they re-offend before the “non-disclosure period” has passed, their record can be used in court. Read the full article »

If you have been charged with a criminal offence in Ottawa, or elsewhere in Canada,you should know that there are two ways that your charges may be dropped.

The Crown has the right to withdraw any criminal charge or they may also stay the proceedings.

Firstly, what this means is that before an accused enters a plea in open court, the Crown can completely withdraw any criminal charge. After this has happened though, if the crown attempts to relay the charge, the courts may intervene to ensure that there is no abuse of this process. If this ever happens to you, make sure you discuss it with your lawyer because any decision by the crown to prosecute after a charge has been withdrawn may require a legal application to be brought before the court.

Secondly, as of right at any time before a final judgement is rendered in a case, the crown may also stay the proceedings stopping the prosecution immediately. In this case, the accused can be released from custody and the court has no power to intervene to require the continuation of the prosecution. However, the Crown does have the power to recommence the prosecution after a stay of proceedings has been entered. For this reason, it is better to get a withdrawal of charges.

If you have been charged with a criminal offence, make sure you have a criminal defence lawyer with the knowledge and experience to protect you. Contact a criminal defence lawyer at Auger Hollingsworth at 613-233-4529 or at info@ottawalawfirm.ca

Whether or not you are found guilty at a trial will depend on whether the crown attorney can prove a guilty act and a guilty mind.

In order to prove guilt, the crown must prove two parts for every criminal offence.  The crown must prove an act (actus reus) was committed by you and that you had the criminal mental intention (mens rea) to commit the act.  There is no guilty act without a guilty mind.

To prove the guilty act, the crown has to show:

a) an action (or omission of an action)

b) by a person with capacity

c) in a voluntary manner

d) which caused certain consequences.

If there is any reasonable doubt about whether these aspects of the alleged criminal act occurred, the court must find you not guilty.  You do not need to testify and your lawyer does  not have to prove that the alleged criminal act did not occur.  You can remain totally silent because the burden of proof is on the crown.

Sometimes, no matter how good your criminal defence lawyer is, you end up with a finding of guilt or a plea of guilt and a sentencing hearing is required.    Sentencing in Ottawa is a very important part of your case and should not be treated as an afterthought.

Where sentencing is likely or possible, our criminal defence lawyers will work with you to help build a strong case for a lenient sentence.   A key component of the sentencing package is reference letters.

We work with our clients to devise a list of people who can provide personal letters of reference on your behalf.   Typically these letters come from members of your community, religious institution, employer, neighbors, teachers or anyone else who is prepared to tell the court that you are a person of integrity who should be sentenced lightly.    Note that we would never contact anyone for a reference letter without your express consent and instructions.

Generally,  the letters of support set out the following:

-who the writer is in terms of occupation and family status

-a description of the writer’s connection to the accused person

-the fact that the writer is aware of the charges; and

-a description of a number of the accused person’s positive personal attributes (such as hard working, honest, a reliable worker, etc.).

The letter should include the writer’s contact information.

A package of supportive letters from people of good reputation in the community can go a long way to assisting your Ottawa criminal lawyers in making strong submissions on sentence.

Last week, the legislation that eliminates two-for-one credit on Canadian sentences came into force.  What this means is that people convicted of a criminal offence and then sentence do not receive additional credit for time they spent in jail before they were found guilty or plead guilty.

While this new law will appeal to those espousing a  tough on crime agenda, there are some real concerns it raises.

First, the two-for-one credit took into account that the conditions at the detention centres where people are typically held before trial are much worse than at a federal or provincial penitentiary.  Local detention centres are over-crowded, often in poor repair and lack programming.  Spending 6 months in this type of holding tank is much, much worse than 6 months at a proper facility.

Second, there is a philosophical argument that is important for people who believe that the presumption of innocence is an important tenet of our judicial system.  Pre-trial, pre-conviction custody entails detaining someone who has not been convicted of a crime.  In our view, there needs to be recognition of this fact.

Third, it eliminates the ability of judges to treat each case individually.  One of the virtues of Canada’s criminal justice system is its ability to tailor the outcome of a criminal prosecution to the facts of the case.   Tying a judge’s hands is contrary to this important principle.

Fourth, lengthy pre-sentence custody is necessitated by a lack of government resources.  People serve “dead time” because there are backlogs in the courts, not enough judges and court staff, etc.  The removal of the 2-1 in sentencing takes a way one incentive for the Crown and the administration of justice to keep the process moving.

Fifth, there is really no evidence that this move will have any impact on reducing crime.  This is legislation about appearing to be tough on crime.  It is not about reducing crime.

Today is the 13th anniversary of my call to the Bar of Ontario.

During my 13 years I have been very fortunate to secure some great outcomes for great people who have had the misfortune of getting caught up in the criminal justice system. Some of the highlights of my career to date include:

• being counsel on a number of the leading decisions on extradition in Canada;
• acting as co-counsel for a man who had been convicted of murder on his second trial where a jury acquitted him;
• having the charges dropped for several clients on major tax evasion cases through Charter arguments and disclosure requests;
• having fraud charges dropped following preliminary inquiries for several business people in different cases;
• resolving countless domestic assault cases with no criminal records of conviction for my clients;
• acting as counsel for a key witness at the Gomery Inquiry;
• representing Karlheinz Schreiber before the Parliamentary Ethics Commitee and the Oliphant Inquiry; and
• acting for important political activists who are charged following protests and similar acts of alleged civil disobedience.

While these are just some highlights of the cases I have been fortunate enough to handle, this list serves to me as an important reminder of how lucky I am to be able to go to work every day to help people like you solve potentially life altering problems.

I am humbled and honoured to be able to enter my 14th year of practice as a criminal defence lawyer.  I thank all my clients, past, present and future for allowing me to serve.

If you have been released on bail, you may have bail conditions to obey while you are released.  These conditions will be printed on the papers the police gave you when you were released from the police station or detention centre.  You should study these conditions and have them on your person at all times.

To avoid being charged with a breach of your bail conditions (which is another criminal charge), you must obey the conditions.  If you have sureties, it is their job to make sure you obey your conditions.  They could lose their posted bail if you don’t obey your conditions.

So what happens if you have a legitimate reason why you cannot readily obey your conditions?  For example, you may have a curfew that requires you to be home by 8 pm but your shift at work ends at 8:30.  If you keep your condition, you will lose your job.  There is a solution in most cases which is to get a bail variation.

Your criminal defence lawyer can try to get you a bail variation when you have a good reason to vary the bail.   Often this can be obtained on the consent of the Crown, depending on the reason for the variation and the nature of the variation.  Sometimes, a bail variation is contested.  A contested variation will require argument before the court and a decision by a judge or a justice of the peace.

In either situation, the variation will certainly take days and may take a few weeks.  As a result, it is very important that you do not leave it to the last minute.  Your criminal lawyer needs some lead time to get a bail variation done.  In the meantime, recall that breaching your conditions could result in additional charges and will almost certainly ensure that your criminal charges will be harder to resolve favorably.