The Supreme Court Restores a Man’s Acquittal Because the Trial Judge Committed No Errors of Law Which Would Allow The Crown to Appeal.

This appeal addresses the circumstances in which the Crown can appeal an acquittal, the accused’s state of mind (or mens rea) required for second degree murder, and the elements required for self-defence. 

Mr. Hodgson attended a house party and was asked to help with removing another guest who refused to leave despite repeated requests to do so. A physical altercation ensued during which Mr. Hodgson used a chokehold to restrain the guest, who lost consciousness and died. Mr. Hodgson was charged with second degree murder.

The trial judge found that it was proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Hodgson caused the guest’s death by placing him in a chokehold. However, based on her assessment of the evidence, she acquitted Mr. Hodgson of second degree murder because the Crown failed to establish the requisite subjective mens rea. A second degree murder is a murder that is not planned and deliberate. She also found Mr. Hodgson not guilty of manslaughter. Manslaughter refers to a homicide committed as a result of a sudden provocation. The trial judge found that Mr. Hodgson’s defence of self-defence under s. 34 of the Criminal Code had an air of reality and that the Crown had failed to establish that the chokehold was not reasonable in all of the circumstances. 

The Court of Appeal allowed the Crown’s appeal of the acquittal and directed that a new trial be held on the basis that the trial judge erred in law in her analysis of the mens rea for murder and the application of self-defence to manslaughter. Mr. Hodgson appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada.

The Supreme Court has allowed the appeal and restored the acquittal.