SUPREME COURT OF CANADA - "HOLD OFF"
Saturday, February 24, 2018 at 11:08AM The right to counsel under s. 10(b) of the Charter obliges police to “‘hold off’ from attempting to elicit incriminatory evidence from the detainee until he or she has had a reasonable opportunity to reach counsel. This applies to attempting to obtain breath samples into an approved instrument the same as it applies to attempting to obtain a verbal statement from an arrested or detained suspect:
When the officer asked the appellant if he wanted to speak with a lawyer, the appellant invoked his right to counsel, replying: “uh, yes.” The officer then read the appellant the standard police “caution” from the same card he kept in his notebook: You may be charged with sexual assault and breach. You are not obliged to say anything unless you wish to do so, but whatever you say may be given in evidence. Do you wish to say anything? The appellant immediately responded with a verbal statement. The Supreme Court of Canada concluded that verbal statement was obtained via a breach of his s. 10(b) right to counsel, and then held that the verbal statement ought not to have been admitted as evidence and ordered a new trial. R. v. G.T.D., 2018 SCC 7