Hundreds of Ontario cases tossed, compromised after police officers violated Charter rights: report

A new report says charges were tossed or evidence was excluded from Ontario court proceedings hundreds of times over the past decade due to police officers in urban areas violating the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Report co-author Sunil Gurmukh, an adjunct law professor at Western University, says people accused of criminal offences are frequently “walking free” because of violations by officers in Toronto, Ottawa and Peel, York and Durham regions.

The research looked at 627 Ontario court rulings between Jan. 1, 2015 and May 31, 2025, in which police officers were found to have violated Charter rights more than 1,000 times.

The report says in 70 per cent of cases, evidence was excluded, proceedings were stayed or a sentence was reduced — something that researchers argue undermines public trust and harms victims.

Gurmukh says the most common Charter rights violations included officers conducting unlawful searches and seizures or delaying suspects’ access to legal counsel.

He says the report did not look at cases in which a suspect was not charged or the Crown decided to withdraw charges.

Gurmukh said in an interview after the report’s release on Wednesday that police forces, oversight agencies and provincial and federal governments must do more.

“To enhance public trust, legitimacy and safety, there must be monitoring, accountability, transparency and independent oversight,” he said, noting that officers’ conduct can have significant consequences.

“Guns, drugs, reliable evidence of child pornography and breathalyzer test results are being excluded from evidence in trials.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 18, 2026.

Maan Alhmidi, The Canadian Press