There are times when your matter is in court, and the police officer may not show up. What are your options?
If you have been charged with a criminal offence or a provincial offence, you have options at your disposal in how you would like to deal with the charge(s):
- Pleading guilty; or
- Dispute the charges – through a resolution meeting or trial; or
In a criminal context, if you plead guilty, you will need to attend court either virtually via Zoom or in person. By pleading guilty to the offence, you will be accepting the version, or some agreed-upon version, of the events the police and the Crown have alleged, and you will receive a sentence from the court. By pleading guilty to the offence, you are giving up your right to dispute the charges.
What is a Guilty Plea
In a provincial offence context, you accept the charges either through a guilty plea or by paying the ticket you have received. If you have received a summons or a Part III offence notice, you will be required to attend in court personally or through an agent/lawyer/paralegal either virtually or in person.
Should you wish to agree with the allegations, much like in a criminal context, you will enter a guilty plea, and the court will pass sentence based on the allegations read into the record by the prosecutor.
If you have received a ticket with a fine quantum on the face of the ticket, you can either do nothing with the ticket, and you will likely be found guilty in absentia, or you can simply pay the ticket. Both of these actions will effectively constitute a guilty plea for the purposes of the record. By doing this, you are also giving up your right to a trial. Now there may be options later should you wish to dispute the charge through a re-opening or an appeal, but if you are seeking to do this, it is best to discuss this process with one of our lawyers or paralegals.
Disputing Charges
Should you dispute the charges, regardless of whether it is a criminal or provincial offences notice (ticket), and it comes to the day when your matter is in court, and the officer does not show up, you have options at your disposal.
It is likely the Crown or Prosecutor will ask for an adjournment because, without the officer, it is likely their case will be deficient. You have the option to oppose this adjournment request or agree to the request. Arguments or submissions will need to be made by both yourself and the Crown/Prosecutor in order for the judge or justice of the peace to determine how to proceed.
If the police officer does not show up and the Crown/Prosecutor does not seek an adjournment request, it is likely your case will be much stronger, and you may have different arguments that you were not expecting available to you.
Are Police Officers Required to Attend Court
Police officers are required to attend court unless there is something urgent which prevents them from attending. It varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction on whether a police officer who was planning on attending court gets interrupted because of other job responsibilities.
It is much more likely for police officers to show up to criminal court as opposed to traffic/provincial offences court. If you are charged with any kind of offence, it is best to discuss your options with one of the lawyers or paralegals from X-Copper Law Firm, as we are well versed on how to deal with situations when the police do not show up in court.
