SECTION 10(B) - RIGHT VIOLATED WHERE POLICE INTERFERE WITH CHOICE

The accused was placed in a telephone room with a phone book. The officer pointed out the number for Legal Aid on the wall. Three minutes later, the officer checked on the accused, he was flipping through the phone book. The officer assumed the accused was having difficulty finding a lawyer and pointed out Legal Aid's number again. He checked on him a second time, and accused told him he could not get an answer. Without asking the accused who he was trying to call, the officer assumed he was calling Legal Aid and dialed Legal Aid. The court found that the accused's right to counsel of choice had been violated. R. v. McCormack, 2011, ABPC 370