R v Lonny Clarke

R v Lonny Clarke

[2004] ONCJ (unreported)
Ontario Court of Justice — Justice Khoorshed

Background

Lonny Clarke was stopped by Officer Olivera for a seatbelt violation while parking near a fire hydrant. During the stop, Clarke backed up his vehicle to get in line with another officer's car. At that moment, an officer in the second police cruiser made a comment asking 'What the hell is he doing?' When Clarke pointed out the fire hydrant, the officer responded with 'F*** you.' The charging officer (Olivera) wasn't even present when this exchange occurred and had no involvement in issuing the ticket. Clarke admitted to not wearing his seatbelt but argued the officer's conduct brought the administration of justice into disrepute.

Issues

1. Did the officer's profane comments during the traffic stop bring the administration of justice into disrepute?
2. Should charges be stayed when police misconduct occurs during enforcement but is unrelated to the actual offence?

The Court's Decision

Justice Khoorshed agreed with Clarke that the officer's conduct was inappropriate and unprofessional. However, the court distinguished this case from more serious scenarios where police misconduct directly impacts the enforcement of the law. Here, the profanity came from an officer who wasn't involved in the actual ticket, occurred after the violation was complete, and was an isolated incident unrelated to the seatbelt charge itself. The justice of the peace had properly exercised discretion in staying the charges, but the appeal court found this wasn't the appropriate legal remedy for what was essentially a separate complaint about officer behaviour.

Key Takeaway

Police rudeness alone won't get your ticket thrown out — but there are proper channels to address it.

While officers should treat the public respectfully, not every instance of unprofessional behaviour will result in charges being stayed. The misconduct must be serious enough and sufficiently connected to the enforcement of the offence to warrant dismissal. For isolated incidents of officer rudeness, the proper remedy is usually a complaint to the police service, not a stay of charges.