R. v. Patrick
Encyclopedia
R. v. Patrick, , is a constitutional decision by the Supreme Court of Canada
on the limits of police powers for search and seizure
. The Court found that police
have the right to take garbage bags placed for collection at edge of a property without warrant. In this case, the accused abandoned his privacy interest when he placed his garbage for collection at the rear of his property where it was accessible to any passing member of the public. His section 8
rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
were not violated when a police officer seized bags of garbage at the rear of his property and used the contents of seized bags as evidence of criminal activity.
to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. The trial judge held that the accused did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the items taken from his garbage and, therefore, the seizure of the garbage bags, the search warrant and the search of the accused’s dwelling were lawful. He admitted the evidence and convicted the accused of unlawfully producing, possessing and trafficking in a controlled substance.
The Court found that the police did not breach the accused’s right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure and that the accused has abandoned his privacy interest when he placed his garbage for collection at the rear of his property where it was accessible to any passing member of the public. The accused did everything required to rid himself of the items taken as evidence. His conduct was incompatible with any reasonable expectation of confidentiality. Neither the search of the contents of the accused’s garbage nor the subsequent search of his dwelling breached s. 8 of the Charter. Hence, the evidence seized in both searches was admissible at the accused’s trial and should not be excluded under section 24(2) of the Charter
.
In assessing the reasonableness of a claimed privacy interest, the Court is to look at the “totality of the circumstances”, and this is so whether the claim involves aspects of personal privacy, territorial privacy, or informational privacy. Frequently the claimant will assert overlapping interests. The assessment always requires close attention to context and first involves an analysis of the nature or subject matter of the evidence in issue.
The reasonableness of an expectation of privacy varies with :
In this case, the accused’s garbage was put out for collection in the customary location for removal at or near his property line and there was no manifestation of a continuing assertion of privacy or control. Territorial privacy is implicated in this case because the police reached across the accused’s property line to seize the bags; however, the physical intrusion by the police was relatively peripheral and, viewed in context, is better seen as pertaining to a claim of informational privacy. The accused’s concern was with the concealed contents of the garbage bags which, unlike the bags, were clearly not in public view.
The accused abandoned his privacy interest in the information when he placed the garbage bags for collection at the back of his property adjacent to the lot line. He had done everything required of him to commit the bags to the municipal collection system.
Since the accused had abandoned his garbage before it was seized by the police, he had no subsisting privacy interest at the time it was seized. The police conduct was objectively reasonable. The accused’s lifestyle and biographical information was exposed, but the effective cause of the exposure was the act of abandonment by the accused, not an intrusion by the police into a subsisting privacy interest.
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
on the limits of police powers for search and seizure
Search and seizure
Search and seizure is a legal procedure used in many civil law and common law legal systems whereby police or other authorities and their agents, who suspect that a crime has been committed, do a search of a person's property and confiscate any relevant evidence to the crime.Some countries have...
. The Court found that police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
have the right to take garbage bags placed for collection at edge of a property without warrant. In this case, the accused abandoned his privacy interest when he placed his garbage for collection at the rear of his property where it was accessible to any passing member of the public. His section 8
Section Eight of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Eight of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides everyone in Canada with protection against unreasonable search and seizure. This Charter right provides Canadians with their primary source of constitutionally enforced privacy rights against unreasonable intrusion from the state...
rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
were not violated when a police officer seized bags of garbage at the rear of his property and used the contents of seized bags as evidence of criminal activity.
Background
The police suspected that the accused, Russell Stephen Patrick, was operating an ecstasy lab in his home. On several occasions in December 2003, they seized bags of garbage that the accused had placed for collection at the rear of his property adjacent to a public alleyway. The police did not have to step onto the accused’s property to retrieve the bags but they did have to reach through the airspace over his property line. The police used evidence of criminal activity taken from the contents of the accused’s garbage to obtain a warrant to search the accused’s house and garage. More evidence was seized during the search.Trial Court
At his trial, the accused argued that the taking of his garbage bags by the police constituted a breach of his right guaranteed by section 8Section Eight of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Eight of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides everyone in Canada with protection against unreasonable search and seizure. This Charter right provides Canadians with their primary source of constitutionally enforced privacy rights against unreasonable intrusion from the state...
to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. The trial judge held that the accused did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the items taken from his garbage and, therefore, the seizure of the garbage bags, the search warrant and the search of the accused’s dwelling were lawful. He admitted the evidence and convicted the accused of unlawfully producing, possessing and trafficking in a controlled substance.
Supreme Court Ruling
The accused appealed to the Supreme Court. The following issues were put to the Court:- whether police breached accused’s right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure
- whether accused abandoned his privacy interest in contents of garbage bags when he placed them at edge of his property for collection.
The Court found that the police did not breach the accused’s right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure and that the accused has abandoned his privacy interest when he placed his garbage for collection at the rear of his property where it was accessible to any passing member of the public. The accused did everything required to rid himself of the items taken as evidence. His conduct was incompatible with any reasonable expectation of confidentiality. Neither the search of the contents of the accused’s garbage nor the subsequent search of his dwelling breached s. 8 of the Charter. Hence, the evidence seized in both searches was admissible at the accused’s trial and should not be excluded under section 24(2) of the Charter
Section Twenty-four of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Section Twenty-four of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides for remedies available to those whose Charter rights are shown to be violated...
.
Expectation of privacy standard
Expectation of privacy is a normative standard. Privacy analysis is laden with value judgments which are made from the independent perspective of the reasonable and informed person who is concerned about the long‑term consequences of government action for the protection of privacy.In assessing the reasonableness of a claimed privacy interest, the Court is to look at the “totality of the circumstances”, and this is so whether the claim involves aspects of personal privacy, territorial privacy, or informational privacy. Frequently the claimant will assert overlapping interests. The assessment always requires close attention to context and first involves an analysis of the nature or subject matter of the evidence in issue.
The reasonableness of an expectation of privacy varies with :
- the nature of the matter sought to be protected,
- the circumstances in which and the place where state intrusion occurs,
- and the purposes of the intrusion.
In this case, the accused’s garbage was put out for collection in the customary location for removal at or near his property line and there was no manifestation of a continuing assertion of privacy or control. Territorial privacy is implicated in this case because the police reached across the accused’s property line to seize the bags; however, the physical intrusion by the police was relatively peripheral and, viewed in context, is better seen as pertaining to a claim of informational privacy. The accused’s concern was with the concealed contents of the garbage bags which, unlike the bags, were clearly not in public view.
Abandonment
Abandonment is a conclusion inferred from the conduct of the individual claiming the s. 8 right that he or she had ceased to have a reasonable expectation of privacy with regard to it at the time it was taken by the police or other state authority. Being an inference from the claimant’s own conduct, a finding of abandonment must relate to something done or not done by that individual, and not to anything done or not done by the garbage collectors, the police or anyone else involved in the subsequent collection and treatment of the “bag of information”.The accused abandoned his privacy interest in the information when he placed the garbage bags for collection at the back of his property adjacent to the lot line. He had done everything required of him to commit the bags to the municipal collection system.
Since the accused had abandoned his garbage before it was seized by the police, he had no subsisting privacy interest at the time it was seized. The police conduct was objectively reasonable. The accused’s lifestyle and biographical information was exposed, but the effective cause of the exposure was the act of abandonment by the accused, not an intrusion by the police into a subsisting privacy interest.
See also
- List of Supreme Court of Canada cases (McLachlin Court)
- Sunwire Services, “Canada Sunflashes”, Toronto Sun, 10 April 2009:
- Tyler, Tracey, “Your garbage fair game for police, court rules”, thestar.com, April 9, 2009: < http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/616201>
- Centre for Constitutional Studies, "R. v. Patrick – Is There a Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Garbage?"