Difference between revisions of "Pleading Not Guilty and Criminal Trials (1:VII)"

# The judge will consider the facts and law, make findings of fact and give their decision and reasons. If the accused is found guilty, a Pre-Sentence Report (PSR) may be ordered. If one is not ordered, the judge will then hear sentencing submissions.

The goal of the defence at trial is NOT to find the truth or to seek justice. The goal of the defence counsel (or the accused if self-represented) is to test the Crown’s case and to present evidence, where appropriate, in order to either show that the evidence as a whole fails to prove the accused’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, or to raise a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the accused. Keep in mind that one way to reach reasonable doubt is to convince the trier of fact that, based on the evidence presented, they simply cannot know for sure what happened. The adversarial process, with defence counsel and Crown Counsel fulfilling their respective roles before a neutral trier of fact, has been one of the most effective ways to find the truth and seek justice. The adversarial process depends upon capable defence counsel vigorously challenging Crown’s case and pursuing viable defences.