Jerry & Jack's Case — Fraud— Conditional Discharge

Clients:  Jerry and Jack, Accused brothers
Complainants:  cellular telephone companies in the G.T.A.

Charges:  conspiracy to commit fraud over $5000, theft over $5000, and possession of cloned telecommunications devices, Criminal Code

Background:  Jerry and Jack were two brothers at the lower end of a sophisticated telecommunications scam. It involved the theft of over $750,000 in cellular and long-distance services. Their role was to relay local calls to overseas destinations using cloned cellular telephones. Their income from this massive and sophisticated fraud was a whopping $8 per hour. Jerry was a citizen, married, and had two children. Jack was a failed refugee claimant that Immigration was trying to deport. They were charged with seven others.

Goals:  Neither brother wanted to go to jail, nor to be convicted. For Jack, a conviction on any charge would likely end his quest to stay in Canada and would hasten his deportation.

Strategy:  This was a complicated matter with nine co-accused persons. As is often the case, the Crown was prepared to accept a guilty plea to a lesser offence, but they wanted nine months in jail on an early guilty plea — more if we went to trial and lost. Jack was not yet a landed immigrant and would be barred from becoming one if convicted. His older brother Jerry did not want a permanent criminal record. Neither wanted to go to jail. The brothers preferred to fight with some hope of winning rather than plead guilty with a likelihood of jail. We hunkered down for the long battle, and scheduled a two-week preliminary hearing. The morning of the hearing arrived. The Court room was lined with telecommunications equipment and boxes of documents. This was going to be long. Before we got started, however, the administrative Judge insisted that all nine lawyers attend a Judicial Pre-trial meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to resolve the matter if possible. The negotiations last all day.

Results:  Jack and Jerry agreed to plead guilty to simple possession of a cloned telecommunications device. The other charges were withdrawn. On sentencing, the Crown wanted a conviction. I sought a discharge. The Judge granted conditional discharges with 150 hours of community service. No conviction was registered.

READ THE TRANSCRIPT OF THE SENTENCING
READ THE CROWN'S OUTLINE OF THE OVERALL CONSPIRACY

Post-Script:  For Jack, there was an added but unintentional benefit. His sentence prevented Immigration from deporting him until he finished his community service hours. He had three years to complete them. Within that time, he legitimized his status, and later became a citizen. Jack and Jerry's criminal records were purged from R.C.M.P.'s national database after 36 months.