Ontario Court of Justice, Waterloo Region · Domestic-related criminal allegations
By Chen (Jake) Shen, criminal defence lawyer · Shen’s Law Professional Corporation · Markham · Toronto · Gilford
In short: our client was charged on two separate informations with seventeen counts arising from the breakdown of a dating relationship, including sexual assault. The Crown elected to proceed by indictment and advised that it would seek a penitentiary sentence even on an early guilty plea. The matter resolved on a plea to one count of assault and one count of failure to comply with an undertaking. Every other count was withdrawn.
What charges was our client facing?
On the first information: uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm (Criminal Code, s. 264.1(1)) × 2, assault (s. 266), and forcible confinement (s. 279(2)).
Months later a second information added sexual assault (s. 271); assault by choking, suffocating or strangling (s. 267(c)); assault with a weapon (s. 267(a)); extortion (s. 346(1.1)); voyeurism (s. 162(1)); criminal harassment by repeated communication (s. 264(2)) × 2; a further count of uttering threats (s. 264.1(1)); mischief under $5,000 (s. 430(4)); assault (s. 266); and failure to comply with an undertaking (s. 145(4)) × 3.
What happens if you are convicted of sexual assault in Canada?
On the Crown’s screening position in this case, a conviction on the s. 271 count carried registration under the Sex Offender Information Registration Act (s. 490.012), a mandatory weapons prohibition of ten years to life (s. 109), a primary-designated DNA order (s. 487.051) and a non-communication order (s. 743.21) — on top of a federal custodial sentence. Those orders are not discretionary add-ons. They follow the conviction, and they last far longer than the sentence does.
Do WeChat and text messages count as evidence in a Canadian criminal case?
They do, and in this file they were the case. The allegations arose in a relationship that had generated an extensive bilingual messaging record — written before anyone was contemplating a trial. That record, not argument, did the work.
- Full review of disclosure across both informations, including the recorded police interviews, the forensic photographs and several hundred pages of WeChat and SMS threads covering the days immediately before and after each alleged incident.
- The Chinese-language threads were translated and produced in parallel form, so the Crown could read the same conversation the defence was reading — in sequence, in full, and without selective excerpting.
- A timestamped index of the complainant’s recorded statement and of the audio recording relied on by the Crown, allowing every defence proposition to be traced to a page or a time code.
- A cross-examination built as short declarative propositions, each tied to its source, directed at the points where the contemporaneous record and the allegations did not align.
- A defence disclosure package delivered to the Crown before trial, setting out the material in an organized form so the case could be reassessed on the evidence rather than on the charge sheet.
The result: two counts, the rest withdrawn
Our client pleaded guilty to a single count of assault (s. 266) and a single count of failure to comply with an undertaking (s. 145(4)) and no jail time. The Crown withdrew every remaining count — sexual assault, choking, assault with a weapon, extortion, voyeurism, forcible confinement, criminal harassment, the threat counts and mischief. There was no sex offender registration, no s. 109 prohibition, and no jail sentence.
Can sexual assault charges be withdrawn in Ontario?
They can, and they are, in the sense that matters here: a Crown that reassesses the reasonable prospect of conviction can withdraw a count at any point before verdict. What makes that happen is rarely advocacy in the abstract. It is usually material the Crown has not yet seen organized — and in relationship cases, the messages exchanged before and after the alleged events are often the most reliable evidence in the file, precisely because they were created before anyone was thinking about court.
Where that record is in Chinese, it is frequently never read properly by anyone in the process. Translating it, indexing it and putting it in front of the Crown in an order that can be checked line by line is slow work — and it is often what changes the assessment of a case.
Frequently asked questions
Can criminal charges be withdrawn in Ontario before trial?
Yes. The Crown may withdraw a charge at any stage if it concludes there is no longer a reasonable prospect of conviction or that prosecution is not in the public interest. A withdrawal is not an acquittal and is not automatic — it follows from the Crown reassessing the evidence, which is why organized defence disclosure matters.
Are WeChat messages admissible in a Canadian criminal court?
Electronic messages are regularly admitted, subject to authentication and the best-evidence rules for electronic documents. Chinese-language threads generally require a translation the court and the Crown can rely on. Producing them in full and in sequence, rather than as isolated screenshots, carries far more weight.
Should I delete messages after being charged?
No. Deleting messages will not remove them from the other party’s device or from the police file, and a gap in your own record can itself become an issue. A complete record is what allows a conversation to be read in context. Preserve everything and give it to your lawyer.
What does it mean when the Crown “proceeds by indictment”?
For hybrid offences the Crown chooses between summary and indictable procedure. Proceeding by indictment signals a more serious view of the allegation, raises the maximum sentence, and changes the procedural route available — including the possibility of a preliminary inquiry and a trial by judge and jury for some offences.
What is a breach of an undertaking under s. 145(4)?
An undertaking is the set of conditions a person agrees to on release — commonly no contact with the complainant, and sometimes geographic restrictions. Contacting the complainant breaches the condition even if the complainant initiates the contact or consents to it. Each contact can be charged separately.
Can a criminal conviction affect immigration or student status in Canada?
It can. Consequences depend on the offence, the sentence imposed and the person’s status, and they can include inadmissibility. Anyone who is not a Canadian citizen should raise their status with counsel before entering any plea, so that the immigration consequences form part of the resolution discussion rather than a surprise afterwards.
Charged in Ontario?
If you or a family member is facing domestic-related criminal charges, the messaging history on the phone matters. Preserve it, delete nothing, and get advice before speaking to anyone about the allegation. Shen’s Law Professional Corporation takes criminal matters across the Greater Toronto Area, Simcoe County and Waterloo Region, in English and Mandarin. Call (647) 390-1131 or visit www.11D.ca.
About the author
Chen (Jake) Shen is a criminal defence lawyer and the principal of Shen’s Law Professional Corporation. He appears in the Ontario Court of Justice across the Greater Toronto Area, Simcoe County and Waterloo Region, and represents clients in English and Mandarin.
Disclaimer
This article describes the outcome of one matter and is provided for general information only. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts, evidence and Crown position; prior results do not guarantee, predict or imply a similar result in any other matter. All identifying information — the names of the parties, the court file numbers, the date of the alleged offences and the date of disposition — has been removed. “R. v. Y.H.” is a fictionalized case style and does not correspond to the initials of any person involved.
Areas served
Greater Toronto Area; York, Peel, Durham and Halton Regions; Simcoe County; and Waterloo Region (Kitchener–Waterloo–Cambridge). Offices in Markham, Toronto and Gilford. Services available in English and Mandarin.
Contact
Chen (Jake) Shen — Shen’s Law Professional Corporation
Telephone: (647) 390-1131
Website: www.11D.ca
Email: jake.shen@11d.ca