FIRST OFFENDER? DEFEND LURING CHARGES IN BRAMPTON.  416-DEFENCE.

Being charged with a criminal offence can be an upsetting and confusing experience. Serious consequences will result from a criminal conviction and the negative implications of a criminal record can affect all aspects of an individual’s life. Being charged with luring in Peel Region can lead to very serious consequences. Our Firm has experience assisting clients who have been charged with a luring in Peel Region and regularly obtain favourable results for our clients. If you have been charged or will be arrested for a sex offence, you should consider the implications of a publication ban during the proceeding.

Section 172.1 of the Criminal Code prohibits the use of a computer or any other telecommunication device to communicate with an underage person for the purpose of facilitating the commission of a sexual offence. The Code enumerates sexual offences that are prohibited under this section, categorizing them by the age of the victim.

The Firm regularly defends those charged with sexual offences against children including child luring, sexual interference and child pornography. These offences are prosecuted aggressively by Crown attorneys all over Ontario, particularly in Peel Region.Police investigations into internet child luring often utilize sophisticated software and forensic internet tracing tools. As a result of sophisticated technology and aggressive prosecutorial techniques, luring cases can be particularly difficult to defend. If you are charged with a child sex offence, you can expect to be placed on bail or sentenced with specific prohibition orders restricting your contact with children.

In 2021, the Firm successfully defended an individual charged with three counts of child luring and one count of making sexually explicit material available to a child in R. v. P.E. [2021]. The accused was arrested after communicating with an undercover police officer online. The Firm launched an entrapment Charter challenge, leading to the Crown withdrawing all three counts of child luring prior to trial.

The Firm has experience defending complex child luring cases including Project Raphael, which involved a police investigation into child sex trafficking. Many of our clients are otherwise law-abiding citizens who have no criminal histories. In many cases, the accused individual never actually met with the minor they were communicating with online. Many of our clients are regular people who may not have even known their actions were criminal. In 2016, the Firm secured the withdrawal of all charges against a TTC driver who was charged with nine different sex offences including child luring in its R. v. A.H. [2016].

The Firm utilizes various computer experts to conduct forensic analysis on computer systems and hard drives. We have experience scrutinizing police investigative techniques to ensure none of our client’s rights are violated throughout the process.

Individuals are prohibited from communicating with a person who is under the age of eighteen or whom the accused believes is under the age of eighteen, for the purpose of facilitating the commission of any of the following sexual offences:

• Sexual Exploitation
• Incest
• Making, Accessing, Distributing or Possessing Child Pornography
• Parent or Guardian Procuring Sexual Activity
• Householder Permitting Sexual Activity
• Procuring (Prostitution-Related Offences)
• Living on the Avails of the Prostitution of a Person Under the Age of Eighteen Years
• Aggravated Offence in Relation to Living on the Avails of Prostitution of a Person Under the Age of Eighteen Years
• Prostitution of a Person under Eighteen Years

Our Firm has experience defending individuals charged with child luring in Brampton. Child luring cases are prosecuted vigorously in Peel Region. We can assist you in developing the correct strategy to achieve the best possible results for your case. Click here for more information on new changes to child sex offence sentencing. Click here for more information on new changes to sexual assault laws in 2021. For more information on how to defend luring charges, click here.

Having a complete understanding of the Elements of the Criminal Offence, Your Rights and the Consequences associated with a Criminal Record is necessary before any legal decisions are made.

Toronto Star: Pornhub and Revenge Porn.

Toronto Star: New Corporate Liability for Child Pornography in Canada.

Toronto Star: Police Power and Social Media Companies.

CP24: Civil Sexual Assault Lawsuit at St. Michael’s in Toronto.

Global News: Historical Sexual Assault Charges and Bill Cosby.

CityNews: Jordan Donich comments to CityNews regarding challenges with Sexual Assault Trials in Toronto.

CityNews: Jordan Donich provides expert commentary to CityNews regarding Sexual Assault Prosecution.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Child Luring in Brampton?
Recent Changes to Luring Laws in Canada.
How Does the Crown Prove Luring in Peel?
How to Defend a Child Luring Charge in Brampton?
What are the Possible Penalties for Child Luring?

Additional Resources

Assault
Assaulting a Peace Officer
Sexual Assault Law in Canada
Sex Offender Prohibition Orders
Consequences of a Criminal Record
Domestic Abuse
First Offenders
Immigration Consequences
Keeping Charges Private
Travel & US Waivers
Vulnerable Sector Screening
Elements of a Crime
Your Rights

What is Luring?

In addition to the definitindividuals are prohibited from using telecommunication to communicating with a person who is under the age of sixteen or whom the accused believes is under the age of sixteen for the purpose of facilitating the commission of any of the following offences:

• Sexual Interference
• Invitation to Sexual Touching
• Exposure
• Sexual Assault
• Sexual Assault with a Weapon, Threats to a Third Party, or Causing Bodily Harm
• Aggravated Sexual Assault
• Abduction of a Person Under Sixteen

Individuals are also prohibited from using telecommunication to communicate with a person who is under the age of fourteen or whom the accused believes is under the age of fourteen for the purpose of facilitating the commission of the following sexual offence:

• Abduction of a Person under Fourteen

The accused must have intended to communicate with a person who is underage. The Crown must prove that the accused genuinely believed that the individual with whom they are communicating is underage.

It is important to note that the Criminal Code prohibits communication with individuals who are underage, as well as individual’s who the accused believes to be underage, even if that is not the case. Many individuals who are caught and charged for child luring have been communicating with an adult undercover police officer posing as a child. The fact that the individual was not in fact a child will not save the accused. However, the accused must have taken reasonable steps to ascertain the individual’s age to ensure they are not underage.

It is also important to note that it is not illegal to exchange sexually explicit messages with an individual who is underage, as long as the adult individual is not doing so for the purpose of facilitating the commission of one of the enumerated offences.

Recent Changes to Luring Laws in Canada

In 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada reviewed child luring laws in Canada in the case of R v. Morrison. In that case the Court found the presumption section of the Code to be unconstitutional. Prior to this case, if it was presented to the accused that the individual they were communicating with was underage, there was a presumption that the accused subjectively believed the individual was underage in the absence of evidence to the contrary. The Court held that this presumption violated an accused’s section 11(d) Charter right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. The Court ruled that the Crown must prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused genuinely and subjectively believed they were communicating with an individual who was underage.

How does the Crown Prove Luring in Brampton?

To prove the offence of child luring and gain a conviction, the Crown must prove all elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt. The Crown must prove that the accused used a telecommunication system such as a computer to make the communications. The Crown must prove that the accused communicated with a person who was either underage, or whom the accused genuinely believed was underage. Finally, the Crown must prove that the accused’s specific purpose in communicating with the underage individual was to facilitate the commission of one of the enumerated offenses listed in the Code.

It is important to note that it is not illegal to exchange sexually explicit messages with an underage person, as long as the purpose of the messages is not to facilitate the commission of one of the enumerated offences. As a result, the Crown must prove that the accused intended to commit one of the enumerated offences and was communicating with the underage person for that purpose.

How to Defend a Child Luring Charge in Brampton?

When developing a strategy to defend a child luring charge, the best defence will always depend largely on the facts of the case and the particular circumstances surrounding it. Some of the most common defences to child luring in Brampton are entrapment and mistaken belief of age.

The defence of entrapment will be available to an individual charged with child luring in situations where authorities present an individual with an opportunity to commit an offence without any reasonable suspicion that accused has already engaged in criminal activity of that sort or pursuant to a bona fide inquiry. This type of entrapment may occur in a child luring case where an undercover police officer engaged the accused first and presented them with the opportunity to communicate for the purpose of facilitating one of the enumerated offences.

The defence of entrapment may also be used successfully in situations where law enforcement, although having a reasonable suspicion or was acting in the course of a bona fide inquiry, goes beyond providing an opportunity and induce the commission of the offence. The defence of entrapment cannot be advanced until the Crown has proven all elements of the offence.

What are the Possible Penalties for Luring in Brampton?

Child Luring is a hybrid offence, meaning the Crown may elect how to proceed which will affect the maximum sentencing range available to the Court when sentencing the accused. In more serious cases, the Crown will elect to proceed by indictment, the accused will be liable to a maximum of fourteen years’ imprisonment and a minimum of one-year imprisonment. In less serious cases the Crown will proceed by summary election and the accused will face a maximum of six months’ imprisonment and/or a $5,000 fine.

Due to the vigorous way child luring cases are prosecuted in Brampton and all over Canada, Crowns are reluctant to make favourable plea deals with defendants. As a result, it is important to hire experienced legal counsel as soon as possible to negotiate the best possible deal. If you have been charged with child luring, our Firm can assist you in attaining the best possible results in your case.

Quick Facts

What is a Luring Charge?

An individual has committed the offence of child luring when they use a computer or telecommunications device to communicate with an individual under the age of sixteen for the purpose of facilitating the commission of an enumerated sexual offence.

What is Internet Luring?

Internet luring is the most common way offenders attempt to lure children and is also the most common way individuals get caught for child luring. Across Ontario, various police forces employ an Internet Child Exploitation unit. This purpose of this unit is to track online predators, gather evidence on them and eventually arrest and prosecute them.

What is the Punishment for Luring?

Child luring is considered a hybrid offence, meaning the Crown has significant discretion regarding the maximum penalty that may be imposed on the accused upon conviction. In more serious cases where the Crown proceeds by indictment, the accused will face a maximum of fourteen years’ imprisonment. In more minor cases where the Crown proceeds summarily, the accused will be liable to a maximum of eighteen months’ imprisonment and/or a $5,000 fine. Even first-time offenders are often sentenced to one to two years’ incarceration upon conviction for child luring.

How to Drop Luring Charges?

In Ontario, sexually based offences involving children are dealt with very seriously. In some cases, where all of the communications were done online, an accused may be able to argue that the Crown has not proved identity, and that they are not he individual who has been communicating with the minor online. In other situations, the defendant may be able to successfully challenge the warrants used to search their electronic devices or gather other incriminating evidence.

What Other Charges are Relevant to Child Luring?

It is quite common for an individual who has been charged with child luring to also be charged with other sexual offences against children including child pornography and making sexually explicit materials available to a child. Even a brief online interaction between an adult and a minor can lead to a number of serious charges being laid against the adult.

What is the Sex Offender Information Registration Act (SOIRA)?

The Sex Offender Information Registration Act is Canada’s federal sex offender registry. Those who have been convicted of child luring will be required, on a mandatory basis, to register as a sex offender for a minimum of ten years. An individual convicted of child luring will also be required to submit a sample of their DNA to the police to be kept on file, and to avoid having direct contact with children for a period of time as prescribed by the Court.

How to Bail Someone out for Child Luring?

Due to the serious nature of child luring charges, almost all individuals who have been charged with such an offence will be held for a bail hearing. During the bail hearing, the Court will hear submissions from both the Crown and the accused regarding whether or not the accused should be released from custody pending trial. In many cases, the accused will be required to have a surety sign for their release. The surety must monitor the accused while they are in the community to ensure they attend court, do not breach their release conditions and do not re-offend. The conditions of release can last for years, and the surety will be responsible for the accused for the duration.