Special Jurisdiction for Offences Committed on Aircrafts or Spacecrafts

From Criminal Law Notebook

General Principles

Deemed Location of Offence

Under s. 476, offences committed during flight will be deemed to have occurred in any territorial division where the flight commenced, ended, or passed through:

Special jurisdictions

476 For the purposes of this Act,

[omitted (a)]
(d) where an offence is committed in an aircraft in the course of a flight of that aircraft, it shall be deemed to have been committed
(i) in the territorial division in which the flight commenced,
(ii) in any territorial division over which the aircraft passed in the course of the flight, or
(iii) in the territorial division in which the flight ended; and
[omitted (e)]

R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 476; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 186; 1992, c. 1, s. 58.

– CCC

Note up: 476

Extraterritorial Application
Offences committed on aircraft


[annotation(s) added]

– CCC

Note up: 7(1), (2), (2.34), (8), and (9)

Section 7(3), (3.1) also deal with offences committed on an aircraft.

Sections 7(2.3), (2.31), (2.32), (2.33), (2.34), addresses offence committed in space, including on the international space station.

Attorney General Consent and Notice Period

Section 7(7) requires the "consent of the Attorney General of Canada" no less "than eight days after the proceedings are commenced" to prosecute a foreign national. There is no obligation on the Crown to prove consent as an element of the offence unless challenged by defence.[1] The time limitation is calculated from the time where the "information was laid", not at the point where process is issued.[2]

Consent by the Attorney General of Canada can include consent by a delegate.[3]

"Termination"

A court within the jurisdiction of a terminated flight will have jurisdiction over an offence occurring on a plane.[4]

A flight that has "terminated" within the meaning of s. 7(1)(b) refers to where it lands, not its final destination.[5]

"Punishable by Indictment"

Offences "punishable by indictment" include hybrid offences prior to Crown election.[6]

  1. ↑ R v Minot, 2011 NLCA 7 (CanLII), per Hoegg JA (3:0)
  2. ↑ Davidson v British Columbia, 2006 BCCA 447 (CanLII), per Levine JA (3:0), at para 21
    see also Laying_of_an_Information#General_Principles
  3. ↑ Minot, supra
  4. ↑ e.g. R v Vella, 2009 ONCJ 30 (CanLII), per Kastner J
  5. ↑ Minot, supra, at paras 64 to 66
  6. ↑ Minot, supra

Spacecraft

Sections 7(2.3) and (2.31) relate to offences occurring on space stations. Both require under s. 7(2.33) consent of the Attorney General of Canada to prosecute.


7
[omitted (1), (2), (2.01), (2.02), (2.1), (2.2) and (2.21)]

Space Station — Canadian crew members

(2.3) Despite anything in this Act or any other Act, a Canadian crew member who, during a space flight, commits an act or omission outside Canada that if committed in Canada would constitute an indictable offence is deemed to have committed that act or omission in Canada, if that act or omission is committed

(a) on, or in relation to, a flight element of the Space Station; or
(b) on any means of transportation to or from the Space Station.
Space Station — crew members of Partner States

(2.31) Despite anything in this Act or any other Act, a crew member of a Partner State who commits an act or omission outside Canada during a space flight on, or in relation to, a flight element of the Space Station or on any means of transportation to and from the Space Station that if committed in Canada would constitute an indictable offence is deemed to have committed that act or omission in Canada, if that act or omission

(a) threatens the life or security of a Canadian crew member; or
(b) is committed on or in relation to, or damages, a flight element provided by Canada.

[omitted (2.32), (2.33), (2.34), (3), (3.1), (3.2) to (3.6), (3.7), (3.71), (3.72), (3.73), (3.74), (3.75), (3.76) and (3.77), (4), (4.1), (4.11), (4.2), (4.3), (5), (5.1), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10) and (11)]
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 7; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 5, c. 10 (3rd Supp.), s. 1, c. 30 (3rd Supp.), s. 1, c. 1 (4th Supp.), s. 18(F); 1992, c. 1, ss. 58, 60(F); 1993, c. 7, s. 1; 1995, c. 5, s. 25; 1997, c. 16, s. 1; 1999, c. 35, s. 11; 2000, c. 24, s. 42; 2001, c. 27, s. 244, c. 41, ss. 3, 126; 2002, c. 13, s. 3; 2004, c. 12, s. 1; 2005, c. 40, s. 2; 2012, c. 1, s. 10, c. 15, s. 1; 2013, c. 9, s. 2, c. 13, s. 3.

– CCC

Note up: 7(2.3) and (2.31)

Consent of Attorney General

7
[omitted (1), (2), (2.01), (2.02), (2.1), (2.2), (2.21), (2.3) and (2.31)]

Proceedings by Attorney General of Canada

(2.32) Despite the definition Attorney General in section 2, the Attorney General of Canada may conduct proceedings in relation to an offence referred to in subsection (2.3) or (2.31). For that purpose, the Attorney General of Canada may exercise all the powers and perform all the duties and functions assigned to the Attorney General by or under this Act. [repealed Bill C-75]

Consent of Attorney General of Canada

(2.33) No proceedings in relation to an offence referred to in subsection (2.3) or (2.31) may be instituted without the consent of the Attorney General of Canada.
[omitted (2.34), (3), (3.1), (3.2) to (3.6), (3.7), (3.71), (3.72), (3.73), (3.74), (3.75), (3.76) and (3.77), (4), (4.1), (4.11), (4.2), (4.3), (5), (5.1), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10) and (11)]
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 7; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 5, c. 10 (3rd Supp.), s. 1, c. 30 (3rd Supp.), s. 1, c. 1 (4th Supp.), s. 18(F); 1992, c. 1, ss. 58, 60(F); 1993, c. 7, s. 1; 1995, c. 5, s. 25; 1997, c. 16, s. 1; 1999, c. 35, s. 11; 2000, c. 24, s. 42; 2001, c. 27, s. 244, c. 41, ss. 3, 126; 2002, c. 13, s. 3; 2004, c. 12, s. 1; 2005, c. 40, s. 2; 2012, c. 1, s. 10, c. 15, s. 1; 2013, c. 9, s. 2, c. 13, s. 3; 2014, c. 25, s. 3.

– CCC

Note up: 7(2.32) and (2.33)

Section 7(2.32) is repealed as of September 19, 2019. see Pending Sept 19, 2019 Bill C-75 [1]

See Also

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