Thursday, October 11, 2012

Crown must disprove consent in a sexual assault

R. v. J.S., 2012 ONCA 684 contains a useful reminder, often forgotten, that the Crown must disprove consent in a sexual assault prosecution:

 

[55]       It is common ground that, in prosecutions for sexual assault, Crown counsel must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the complainant did not consent to the activity that is the subject matter of the charge. Further, where apprehended consent is in play, Crown counsel must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused did not honestly believe that the complainant was consenting to the relevant activity.

 

1 comment:

E.J. Guiste said...

And as we learned from the scc the party must be capable of consenting - consent to engage in acts that will lead to unconsciousness will nullify consent. Oh boy !