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| Patrick Ducharme |
The trial Judge, even before a jury is selected, is able to hear pre-trial applications concerning any matter that would ordinarily or necessarily be dealt with in the absence of the jury.1 Subsection 645(5) provides the authority:
645(5): In any case to be tried with a jury, the Judge before whom an accused is to be tried has jurisdiction, before any juror on a panel of jurors is called pursuant to subsection 631(3) or (3.1) and in the absence of any such juror, to deal with any matter that would ordinarily or necessarily be dealt with in the absence of the jury after it has been sworn.
The Judge presiding over a case without a jury is entitled to reserve final decision on any question raised at the trial or with respect to any matter raised further to a pre-hearing conference. The ultimate decision, when rendered, is deemed to have been given at the trial.2
The above is the an excerpt of Patrick J Ducharme's book, Canadian Criminal Procedure, available at Amazon or in bulk through MedicaLegal Publishing along with Criminal Trial Strategies.
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