What happens at a bail hearing?

The Crown Attorney will read in the allegations surrounding why the individual was charged. Oftentimes, the Court will then hear evidence from the potential surety (or sureties). The Crown will have an opportunity to ask the potential surety questions. The lawyer will then make submissions as to why the individual should be released from custody. The court will then decide whether or not the accused person should be released from jail while they await their trial.

To release an individual from custody pending trial, the Court must be satisfied that the person charged with the crime(s) will attend court on all his/her court dates, will not commit any criminal offences while awaiting trial, and that the community would not be offended by the idea of a person charged with the specific offence(s) being released on bail. This last factor is generally considered when the offences are serious in nature.

More often in today’s society, the onus is on the accused individual to convince the court that he/she should be released on bail pending trial. Under our current Conservative government, more and more offences are triggering the reverse onus provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada than ever before. For some offences, the Crown still has the burden of showing the court why the accused individual should stay in custody until their trial.