A Vancouver provincial court judge ruled Wednesday that applying the Harper government’s mandatory minimum sentence law of one year in prison to a small-time drug dealer constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment” and declared it to be “of no force and effect” in B.C.
Judge Joseph Galati made the ruling in sentencing longtime offender Joseph Ryan Lloyd, 25, who was convicted on three counts of possession of small amounts of crack cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin for the purpose of trafficking.
“The government would be remiss in its duty to the citizens of Canada if it did not attempt to combat trafficking but must do so in adherence to the Charter [of Rights and Freedoms],” wrote Galati in his written reasons for judgment.
Galati sentenced Lloyd, whom he described in court documents as a low-level drug dealer, to 191 days instead of the one-year minimum sentence, which applied to Lloyd because of a prior conviction for drugs. The federal Crown, which will appeal the decision, was originally pursuing a sentence of two years, less a day.
The judge’s ruling was a result of a constitutional challenge by Lloyd’s lawyer, David Fai, who described Galati’s decision as precedent-setting and expected it to affect more cases related to the mandatory minimum sentence law, which came into effect in November 2012.
“Other judges should be following this decision,” Fai told reporters outside the courthouse, one block from the notorious drug dealing corner at Main and Hastings. “If you look in this neighbourhood where we are — and I don’t know the percentages — but there’s a lot of people that have prior convictions in the last 10 years that are addicts, that are sharing with their friends or selling small amounts to support their addiction. They’d all be sent to jail for a minimum of one year under this legislation.”
Added Fai: “So instead of harm reduction, we’re just going to sweep them into jail.”
In earlier testimony, Lloyd said he was addicted to crack cocaine, heroin and methamphetamines and sold drugs to support his drug habit. He was selling drugs up to four or five days some weeks and less often when he found work in construction.
Court documents say Lloyd, who came to Vancouver in 2011 from Alberta where he has a five-year-old daughter, has a total of 21 prior convictions, including numerous breaches of court orders, several fraud or forgery offences, thefts, assault and possession of a prohibited weapon.
When police arrested him in March 2013, he was in possession of 2.39 grams of cocaine, 6.16 grams of methamphetamine and 0.64 grams of heroin. He was carrying $304 in cash and a “score sheet” with names and numbers, likely to keep track of sales.
Fai said Lloyd completed a couple of drug treatment programs in prison and was accepted to a recovery house. Lloyd, dressed in red prison sweats during his appearance Wednesday, declined to make a statement to the judge.
In a previous court appearance, however, he acknowledged the drugs he sold were dangerous and addictive and that, until recently, he had not given any thought to the effect the drugs had on the purchasers.
Fai described the Harper government’s minimum sentencing laws as draconian and “hurt more people than help.” He noted a recent Statistics Canada report shows the crime rate in Canada has steadily declined since 1991.
“Someone much wiser than me once said that the true test of a just society is not how it treats its most worthy, but how it treats its seemingly least worthy,” he said. “This legislation that was declared unconstitutional today — and a lot of other legislation passed by the Harper government with respect to criminal justice — failed that test miserably.”
Fai pointed out the Ontario Court of Appeal recently ruled unconstitutional the mandatory minimum sentence for firearm-related offences. That case will go before the Supreme Court of Canada, the same court Fai expects the Lloyd case to end up as it makes its way through the higher courts.
Federal Crown Paul Riley declined to comment when questioned outside the courtroom but acknowledged the case will be appealed. Riley attempted to make an argument in court concerning the effect Galati’s ruling could have on other cases.
“Whatever your argument is, it’s better saved for the court of appeal,” the judge told Riley before wishing him and Fai “good luck” in going forward with the case. He also wished Lloyd good luck.
