Levien Law

05/21/2016

Rogers handed over customer data such as names, addresses and billing information to law enforcement and government agencies in response to 97 per cent of their more than 80,000 requests last year, the company says in its third annual transparency report.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/rogers-transparency-report-1.3591055

Rogers handed over customer data such as names, addresses and billing information to law enforcement and government agencies in response to 97 per cent of their requests last year, the company says in its third annual transparency report.

04/14/2016

People are being “set up to fail,” says CCLA’s executive director, Sukanya Pillay.

“There are a whole host of unnecessary and frankly ridiculous conditions that are frequently imposed on people who are released on bail,” she says.

Unnecessary curfews may prevent employment opportunities. Abstinence conditions for people with addictions may result in new criminal charges for failing to comply with bail conditions.

http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2016/04/13/troubled-bail-system-a-vicious-circle-experts-say.html

Delays and strict conditions mean those subject to bail are being set up to fail, legal experts say.

03/31/2016

"Giancaterino, and many other defense lawyers, argue that bail is now being used as a form of preventative detention — to keep people who are supposed to be presumed innocent in jail in anticipation of them committing a crime."

https://news.vice.com/article/a-canadian-jail-is-so-overcrowded-that-inmates-have-been-sleeping-in-showers

The Ontario government has promised to end the "absolutely appalling" practice and to form a task force to address the issue of overcrowding in provincial jails.

03/29/2016

"Case law suggests that the sentencing range for impaired driving causing death, even where there have been multiple fatalities, is between five and eight years."

http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2016/03/28/what-role-does-wealth-play-in-criminal-proceedings.html

Marco Muzzo’s affluent background has certainly coloured how the public perceives him. But how much impact does it have inside a courtroom?

03/23/2016

Catch Lawyer Christien Levien today on CBC Radio discussing the new carding regulations being brought in by the Ontario government.

http://www.cbc.ca/player/radio

03/21/2016

"Sgt. Jeff Jones, a 15-year veteran of Peel police, was charged Thursday following an internal investigation ordered by Chief Jennifer Evans. She ordered the investigation in December, the same month the assault is alleged to have occurred.

Jones has been suspended with pay since the start of the investigation and that suspension continues with the laying of the charge. He will make his first court appearance April 13.

Under the Police Services Act, chiefs of police in Ontario have no choice but to suspend accused officers with pay, according to Acting Staff Sgt. Bill Ford."

http://www.bramptonguardian.com/news-story/6396108-peel-police-sergeant-charged-after-prisoner-allegedly-assaulted-in-cells-at-22-division/

A sergeant with Peel Regional Police has been charged with one count of common assault for an in-custody incident in the cells at Brampton’s 22 Division last December.

03/20/2016

Opiod drug use is on the rise in both the United States and Canada.

http://www.salon.com/2016/03/20/this_drug_may_be_surpassing_he**in_as_a_killer_and_the_drug_war_is_to_blame/

An extremely powerful opioid called fentanyl is contributing to a disturbing surge in overdoses in America

03/08/2016

Nearly 25 years ago, Maria Shepherd was convicted of manslaughter in the death of her three-year-old stepdaughter in her Brampton home. Ms. Shepherd's conviction was due in part to testimony given by the now infamous foresnsic pathologist Dr. Charles Smith.

Defence Lawyer James Lockyer together with Thomas Wiley had represented Ms. Shepherd at the Court of Appeal. The case was overturned and Ms. Shepherd has now been acquitted of all charges.

http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2016/02/28/woman-implicated-by-charles-smiths-flawed-evidence-hopes-for-closure-and-peace.html

Attorney General agrees Maria Shepherd deserves acquittal in her stepdaughter’s death after disgraced pathologist gave “fundamentally flawed” evidence.

03/04/2016

Amrik Singh Ahluwalia has been elected as the new chair of the Peel Police Services Board.

"Ahluwalia’s leadership could spell trouble for (Police Chief) Evans if she continues to challenge the board on the controversial issue of street checks, a police practice of stopping and recording personal information of people not involved in a criminal investigation, known in Toronto as “carding.”

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/01/29/peel-police-board-picks-ahluwalia-as-chair.html

Amrik Singh Ahluwalia wasted no time charting a new direction for the force on Friday, renewing the fight against street checks.