Criminal Harassment Defence Lawyer Mississauga, ON
Being charged with criminal harassment can be stressful, or cause further emotional, financial and other disturbances in your life. People often do not know that their behaviour or actions can often result in criminal harassment charges. The conduct in which the accused is involved in, is one which has caused the victim to fear for their safety or anyone known to them. If the accused was already on some sort of a condition by the court or any other order and violated those terms and conditions, on sentencing, the court considers this as an aggravating factor. The offence of criminal harassment under section 264(1) of the Criminal Code reads as follow: No person shall, without lawful authority and knowing that another person is harassed or recklessly as to whether the other person is harassed, engage in conduct referred to in subsection (2) that causes that other person reasonably, in all the circumstances, to fear for their safety or the safety of anyone known to them.
The Criminal Code makes references to certain types of actions that can be classified as criminal harassment, actions which have been codified as prohibited under section 264(2) of the Criminal Code consist of (a) repeatedly following from place to place the other person or anyone known to them;(b) repeatedly communicating with, either directly or indirectly, the other person or anyone known to them;(c)besetting or watching the dwelling-house, or place where the other person, or anyone known to them, resides, works, carries on business or happens to be; or engaging in threatening conduct directed at the other person or any member of their family.
Criminal harassment is a hybrid offence, and the prosecutor can decide whether to proceed summarily or by indictment depending on the facts of the charge. Indictment proceeding is treated more severely and the accused can elect a mode of trial whether by judge alone or judge and jury.
The charge of criminal harassment is very fact specific and depends on context, and various other factors. It is the duty of the crown prosecutor to prove the elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt. All the elements of criminal harassment must be met. If you are charged with criminal harassment you may have a defence available depending on the facts of the case. Your criminal harassment defence lawyer will advise you if there are any legal defences to your alleged criminal harassment charge which may negate the elements of the offence.
Do not plead guilty until you have either consulted with duty counsel or a criminal defence lawyer regarding your criminal case. It is also important to know that you have legal rights and equally important that they are preserved.
Contact an experienced Criminal Harassment Criminal Defence Lawyer today at (905) 230-4529 and book your free consultation. I will defend your case and fight for you to ensure that you obtain the best possible outcome in a time effective manner. I also accept Legal Aid Certificates. Hire me as your Legal Aid Criminal Defence Lawyer in Mississauga today!
DISCLAIMER: The content provided is for Informational purposes only. Nothing shall be construed on this web page as providing legal advice nor does the content form any kind of Solicitor-Client relationship. Readers should verify the source of the information and obtain legal advice before relying or acting upon it.