If you are facing public mischief charges, you need a criminal defence lawyer in Toronto to look at your case as soon as possible.
Public Mischief is a charge which involves intentionally misleading a peace officer. The Crown must prove that you caused a peace officer to initiate or continue an investigation with the intent to mislead.
Public mischief charges commonly arise out of false 9-1-1 calls requesting the assistance of the police, paramedics, or firefighters, or false allegations against an innocent person.
When a 9-1-1 call is made, emergency response units are obligated to attend to the need. If a false call or allegation is made, it wastes significant public resources. Because of this, the Crown takes public mischief charges very seriously.
Strategic Criminal Defence is a top Google-rated criminal defence firm in Toronto, with over 500 5-star reviews. Our firm, and our experienced legal team, have defended clients in over 10,000 criminal cases. Leveraging our extensive network of lawyers and decades of experience, we craft defence strategies to help those accused of public mischief beat the charge.
The lawyers at Strategic Criminal Defence are both highly experienced and dedicated to defending your rights and future in the face of these charges. Contact a Toronto Public Mischief lawyer today by calling (647) 986-8077.
Key Takeaways
- Public mischief involves intentionally misleading a peace officer to start or continue an investigation
- Common examples include false 911 calls and false allegations against innocent people
- The Crown takes these charges seriously because they waste significant public resources
- It’s a hybrid offence with penalties up to 5 years imprisonment for indictable offences
- A conviction results in a permanent criminal record affecting employment and travel
- Mental health issues or genuine belief in the report can serve as potential defences
How can a Public Mischief lawyer in Toronto help?
As we start preparing your defence by examining police actions and the evidence against you, there are certain defence strategies that can be used to aid your cause, including:
- Assembling documents, photographs, texts, etc. that contradict the allegation and support your defence;
- Gathering evidence from witnesses that support your version of events;
- Identifying mistakes in the actions of the police, such as Charter breaches;
- Uncovering administrative/systemic errors, such as “Jordan delay,” non-disclosure, lost or destroyed evidence, etc.; and
- Finding weaknesses or “holes” in the Crown’s case that may make it difficult or impossible for them to establish the elements of the offence.
Public Mischief in the Criminal Code of Canada:
According to section 140 of the Criminal Code of Canada:
Public Mischief
140 (1) Every one commits public mischief who, with intent to mislead, causes a peace officer to enter on or continue an investigation by
(a) making a false statement that accuses some other person of having committed an offence;
(b) doing anything intended to cause some other person to be suspected of having committed an offence that the other person has not committed, or to divert suspicion from himself;
(c) reporting that an offence has been committed when it has not been committed; or
(d) reporting or in any other way making it known or causing it to be made known that he or some other person has died when he or that other person has not died.
If you’ve been charged under section 140, our Public Mischief lawyers in Toronto can explain your options and build a tailored defence.
Examples of Public Mischief Offences
If you do any of the following in Toronto, you could be charged with Public Mischief:
- Making a false 911 call reporting a crime that didn’t happen to get emergency services to respond
- Falsely accusing an innocent person of committing a criminal offence to police
- Reporting a fake death to authorities when the person is actually alive
- Calling in a fake emergency to schools, workplaces, or public venues
Consequences of a Public Mischief Offence
Public mischief is treated as a hybrid offence in Canada. This means that the Crown can choose to prosecute you summarily or by way of indictment. Your punishment will vary depending on how the Crown chooses to proceed. The potential penalties can range anywhere from a discharge (i.e. a finding of guilt, but no criminal conviction), to a fine and/or probation, to a period of jail time. For an overview of how sentencing works in Toronto courts, see our guide to criminal sentencing.
Where the offence is more serious, including a more significant cost of wasted resources or a more harmful impact on the complainant, the Crown will often seek jail time to deter future behaviour.
The Criminal Code of Canada outlines the punishment for public mischief:
- Indictable offence: Imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years; or
- Summary offence
Some aggravating factors that increase the likelihood of jail time are:
- The offence was committed while out on bail;
- The offence was committed for the benefit of, in association with, or at the direction of a criminal organization;
- The offence involved the use of a prohibited firearm; and
- You are not a resident of Canada.
The potential sentences available to you will depend on a variety of factors, including the extent of public resources wasted, the nature of any false allegations, the relationship between you and any alleged victim, your criminal history, and other applicable personal factors.
In addition to the immediate penalties resulting from a conviction for public mischief, it can have wide-ranging negative consequences on your future. You may have trouble securing employment, especially in roles that require working with children, the elderly, or other vulnerable sectors of society. The lifelong criminal record that results from a conviction can also hinder immigration and travel.
Public Mischief Offence Defences
Here are some common defences that might apply to you:
- You might have a strong case if you really believed what you said, even if it turned out to be false. You didn’t do anything wrong if you thought you saw someone break into a house but it turned out to be the homeowner who had lost their keys.
- Having a mental illness can sometimes change how a person sees the world or what they do. This could be a defence if you were having a mental health crisis, delusions, or another mental illness when you made the false report. This defence might not get you out of legal consequences completely, but it could lead to mental health diversion programs or treatment-based solutions instead of jail time.
- If the police broke the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms while looking into your case, they might not be able to use any evidence they found in your trial. If your Charter rights are violated and important evidence is thrown out, the Crown might not have enough evidence left to prove their case against you. Learn more about what to expect in the criminal court process in Toronto.
Public Mischief Charge Investigation
An investigation of a public mischief charge in Toronto is typically initiated by the peace officer alleged to have been misled; the alleged victim (or relative or witness) of false accusations or they are ordered by the Court. Because peace officers and public officers are often vested with powers authorizing arrest, a charge can flow directly from the alleged public mischief and may rely solely on the statement of the officer. The police will request a written or videotaped statement from the complainant and any witnesses, and will then initiate an investigation.
Toronto Police take public mischief crimes very seriously, as they impede law enforcement. The police will typically engage in a thorough investigation to find sufficient evidence to charge. After the police have gathered their evidence, they will arrest you if they believe you, are the perpetrator. Police will track you down or issue a warrant for your arrest.
After you have been charged, police will provide a package with all the evidence they collected, known as the “disclosure package,” to the Crown Prosecutor. You will have the right to access this disclosure package to see the evidence against you. Once you retain one of our lawyers, we will assist you in obtaining the disclosure package, and we will review it with you to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Crown’s case, as well as any legal defences that may be available to you.
Bail Conditions for Public Mischief Charges
If you are charged with public mischief and released on bail while you wait for your trial, the court will give you conditions to follow. As part of their bail, people who are charged with public mischief often have to promise not to call the police or other emergency services unless there is a real emergency.
You will also probably have to go to a police station or bail supervisor on a regular basis. If you were charged with public mischief for lying about a school or workplace, you might not be able to go near those places.
You could be charged with a new crime and lose your bail if you don’t follow the conditions of your bail. This means you would have to stay in jail until the trial or sentencing.
