Juan's Case — Break and Enter — Withdrawn

Client:  Juan C., Accused
Complainant:  caretaker of commercial building
Charge:  Break and Enter with Intent to Commit Indictable Offence

Background:  Juan was expanding his business. He was in a commercial building looking at some new space. On his way out, Juan glanced into another empty unit. He noticed some light fixtures like his own. Bulbs for these fixtures were scarce, as neither the bulbs nor the fixtures were manufactured anymore. Figuring that the new occupant would change the fixtures and wouldn't need these old ones, he entered the unit and took the bulbs. While doing this, one of the fixtures fell apart. Juan took the light bulbs, went downstairs, and secured them in his car. Now, any good thief would, at this point, make good his exit. But Juan was no thief. Feeling an urge to repair the fixture, Juan took his toolkit to the unit, and proceeded to repair the fixture. As luck would have it, the building's caretaker spotted him. The police were called. He was charged with break and enter with intention to commit theft.

READ THE POLICE REPORT

Goals:  Juan wasn't in great shape when he first met me. He was still in shock at his own lapse in judgment and at having been arrested. Just to get him grounded as to what was happening, I had to meet with him for two hours and then with him and his wife for another two hours. Juan was concerned with the stigma of a criminal record, the potential punishment, and his ability to continue racing which often required him to enter into the United States. Juan wanted to avoid trial if possible, because the wait would be too long, and because he didn't want to risk being convicted. I set my sights on getting the charge withdrawn, or, as a second alternative, pleading him guilty to an attempted theft for a discharge. I asked Juan to keep an open mind about going to trial, as that still might be required to achieve a good result.

Strategy:  After spending over four hours with Juan, it was clear that he had been under a tremendous amount of stress for a long period of time. His actions were obviously out of character, and he wasn't quite sure why he did it. My spider sense told me that Juan might have some minor mental health issues that needed to be addressed through professional counseling. As Juan had never been to counseling before, he was reluctant. I explained to him that, in addition to helping him on a personal level, the counseling could help his case. If we could establish that Juan had a mental or behavioural disorder at the time of the offence, I might get his charge withdrawn. Most importantly, there was nothing to lose in this approach. If our application failed, I still had concerns about how the police set up his charge, and I could make this attack at a later time. Juan agreed to go on the understanding it might help his case. I sent him to Counsellor Timothy Quek.

Results:  Counsellor Quek soon afterwards reported that Juan was suffering from some marital and personal problems which required counseling. In consultation with the Crown's office and the mental health coordinator at Newmarket Court, we set up a treatment program for Juan. Not only was the treatment program instrumental in convincing the Crown to withdraw the charge, but it helped Juan to reduce his overall stress level, feel better about himself, and strengthen his relationship with his wife.

READ JUAN'S TESTIMONIAL