R v Latimer (1997)

R v Latimer
Supreme Court of Canada
Hearing: November 27, 1996 Judgment: February 6, 1997
Full case name	Robert W Latimer v Her Majesty The Queen
Citations	[1997] 1 SCR 217, 1997 CanLII 405, 142 DLR (4th) 577, [1997] 2 WWR 525, 112 CCC (3d) 193, 41 CRR (2d) 281, 4 CR (5th) 1, 152 Sask R 1
Docket No.	24818 [1]
Prior history	Judgment for the Crown in the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan
Ruling	Conviction overturned, new trial ordered
Holding
Section 10(a) of the Charter requires that one be made aware of the seriousness of the situation; Section 10(b) is not breached when one is not told of a means of accessing duty counsel that is not available at the time
Court membership
Chief Justice: Antonio Lamer Puisne Justices: Gérard La Forest, Claire L'Heureux-Dubé, John Sopinka, Charles Gonthier, Peter Cory, Beverley McLachlin, Frank Iacobucci, John C. Major
Reasons given
Unanimous reasons by	Lamer CJ

R v Latimer, [1997] 1 SCR 217, was a decision by the Supreme Court of Canada in the controversial case of Robert Latimer, a Saskatchewan farmer convicted of murdering his disabled daughter Tracy. The case involved consideration of arbitrary detention under section 9 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and rights to an explanation for detention and rights to counsel under section 10. The Supreme Court ultimately overturned Latimer's conviction due to the Crown's improper actions at the jury selection stage. As a result, the decision was the first given by the Supreme Court in the Latimer case, the second being R v Latimer^[2] on cruel and unusual punishment under section 12 of the Charter.