Violent Offences

An assault charge most often results from someone hitting, punching, pushing or otherwise striking another person. However, the crime of assault covers much more than that. An attempt or a threat to apply force to another person is an assault if the complainant reasonably believes that the threat or attempt can be carried out. Also, impeding someone while openly carrying a weapon or an imitation weapon is an assault. Being convicted of an assault charge can have serious consequences. This could include time in jail. Even if it is your first time being charged, you may end up with a criminal record which could hurt your job prospects and your ability to travel internationally. Having a lawyer to defend you on these charges could be a great help to keep you criminal-record free.

An aggravated assault is an assault that results in a person being wounded, maimed, disfigured or their life being endangered. As the most serious of assaults, aggravated assault carries a maximum punishment of fourteen years in prison. Any prison sentence resulting from an aggravated assault conviction cannot be served by a conditional sentence order, or ‘house arrest’ – it has to be served in jail. Being convicted of an assault charge can have serious consequences. This could include time in jail.
Even if it is your first time being charged, you may end up with a criminal record which could hurt your job prospects and your ability to travel internationally. Having a lawyer to defend you on these charges could be a great help to keep you criminal record free.

Assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm are under the same section of the Criminal Code of Canada and carry the same base punishment. An assault with a weapon means an assault which was committed while carrying, using or threatening to use a weapon or an imitation weapon.

Bodily harm is defined in the Criminal Code as any hurt or injury to a person that interferes with the health or comfort of the person and that is more than merely transient or trifling in nature. Anyone convicted of assault with a weapon or assault causing bodily harm will have a sample of their DNA taken and kept in a database for potential future investigations. Being convicted of an assault charge can have serious consequences. This could include time in jail. Even if it is your first time being charged, you may end up with a criminal record which could hurt your job prospects and your ability to travel internationally. Having a lawyer to defend you on these charges could be a great help to keep you criminal-record free.

An emergency protection order, or EPO, is available when there is violence or threatening behaviour between family members. These orders are granted by a judge or a justice of the peace. They can result in a person being ordered not to contact another person or to go to a residence, and are for the purpose of protecting the person who is subject to violence or threats.

Intimidation of a justice system participant includes certain behaviour done with an intent to provoke a state of fear in order to impede the administration of justice. The type of behaviour that can make out this crime includes using violence or threats of violence against a person or their family, persistently following a person or being at their house or workplace, and hiding any property of a person.
This offence can be made out where the person being intimidated is a member of government, a prosecutor, a defence lawyer, a judge, a member of a jury, a police officer, a witness, a court employee,or any other justice system participant.

Threats do not have to be spoken for uttering threats to be made out. A threat conveyed in any manner can result in a conviction, including written threats. Threats can be made out in many ways. To determine if a person’s words were a threat, the words have to be analyzed in the context or circumstances in which they were spoken. Words which constitute threats are words which threaten to cause death or bodily harm to a person, to burn or destroy or damage a person’s property, or to harm an animal belonging to a person.