Kennel owner loses bid to have evidence on SPCA charges tossed
A Sainte-Basile man, who had 133 dogs in his kennel, has been found guilty on two charges under the SPCA Act despite having his language rights violated.
In October 2011, Normand Lavoie was charged with failing to provide adequate food, water, shelter and care for the dogs and with operating a kennel without a licence.
Evidence presented at Lavoie's trial included:
- Dogs kept in indoor enclosures without beds, some lying directly on cement
- Dogs with severely matted fur.
- Pregnant dogs were kept in an enclosure with a light hanging too close to the floor.
- A strong small of urine and questionable ventilation.
- Ramshackle doghouses, which offered only incomplete protection from the elements.
- Food was served in old tomato juice cans that were attached to the wall by a wire and had become rusted in places.
- Small dogs had difficulty accessing food because the cans were too high for them to reach.
During a voir dire during the trial, Lavoie filed a motion under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, claiming his language rights were violated because the search warrant used to seize the animals was only in English.
Lavoie contended the appropriate remedy for the infringement was to exclude the evidence obtained.
While the warrant executed on Oct. 27, 2011 was in English only, a bilingual RCMP was present to explain its contents to Lavoie.
In a decision dated July 24, 2015 that hasn't been widely reported, provincial court Judge Marco Cloutier ruled that while Lavoie's Charter language rights had been infringed upon, it did not justify throwing out all the evidence, which would prove "virtually fatal" to the Crown's case.
"This case does not involve the most serious charges in the sense that they are not criminal but rather regulatory in nature," states Cloutier in his decision.
"However, that does not mean that they are minor.
"Depriving a large number of dogs of adequate medical attention and breeding them under conditions that area quite likely to compromise their health cannot be taken lightly.
"The seized dogs, the officers observations about the condition of the dogs and their accommodation, and all of the related testimony, are relevant and reliable evidence, the exclusion of which could bring the administration of justice into disrepute."
With the evidence admitted, Cloutier found Lavoie guilty of failing to provide adequate care for 33 of the 133 dogs in his kennel and failing to provide adequate shelter for 133 dogs in accordance with regulations.
He was also found guilty of operating a kennel without a valid licence.
Cloutier said the infringement of Lavoie's language rights "should be considered at the sentencing hearing as a mitigating circumstance justifying a reduced sentence."
