Assault is using force against a person without his consent. There are several kinds of assault, including simple assault, aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and different forms of sexual assault. Here are a few examples of behaviour that are considered assault:

• grabbing someone’s wrist, pouring water on someone, shoving someone (simple assault)
  
• breaking someone’s tooth by kicking him (assault causing bodily harm)
  
• stabbing with a knife or threatening with a stick (assault with a weapon)
  
• forcibly kissing someone on the mouth (sexual assault)

Intimidation is when someone does these things without having the right to do them:

• prevents someone from doing something that he has a right to do
  
• forces someone to do something he has a right to refuse to do

The offence of intimidation can happen in these ways:

• using threats or violence against someone
  
• damaging someon's property
  
• following someone persistently
  
• hiding a person's tools or clothing, or getting in the way of or stopping him from using them
  
• cornering someone in a threatening way or watching him

Let’s take an example: Jenna is afraid of Axel. She tries to get out of the house, but Axel blocks her and prevents her from leaving. Jenna wants to call the police, but Axel threatens to hurt her if she does.

A person found guilty of intimidation will normally face up to 5 years in prison as a sentence.

Criminal harassment is when a person makes someone fear for her own safety or the safety of a loved one.

For a person to be found guilty of harassment, he must know that the victim feels harassed, or not care that she feels harassed.

As a general rule, harassment includes repeated acts that, combined in a specific context, are threatening for the victim. Simply bothering or inconveniencing someone is not enough to be considered criminal harassment if the person does not fear for her safety.

These are considered to be harassment under criminal law: following a person repeatedly, communicating with a person repeatedly or watching the place where the person is located.

Here is an example, imagine that Jeremy, Carl’s boss, fired him yesterday evening. Carl tried to call him to patch things up, but Jeremy hung up on him every time he called. Carl calls 25 times that night, yelling nonsense over the phone. Carl is furious and goes to Jeremy’s house. He rings the doorbell several times, but no one answers. Carl parks in the street and waits for Jeremy to come out. He does this every night for a week.

A person found guilty of criminal harassment faces up to 10 years in prison.

This means phoning a person repeatedly to bother or harass her.

For example: Cameron and Natasha have separated. Natasha is now living with Eric. Jealous, Cameron calls them at one o’clock in the morning and insults Natasha. Natasha tells him that it is late and she doesn’t want to talk to him. She hangs up, but Cameron calls repeatedly until four o’clock in the morning.

A person found guilty of this offence faces up to 6 months in prison and/or a fine of up to $5,000.

The offence of uttering threats means showing that you mean to harm someone.

However, to be criminal, the threats must relate to:

• causing death or bodily harm
  
• burning, destroying or damaging property
  
• killing, poisoning or hurting someone’s animal

Also, there must be evidence of an intention to intimidate the victim or to make him fear for his safety. If the intent is to scare the victim, the act will be considered a threat, even if the aggressor does not plan on carrying out the threat.

This offence can be committed by threatening a person directly or by sending the threats through another person. Here is an example of this: Julie calls Paul and says, “Tell Peter I’m going to slash his tires.”

A person found guilty this offence faces up to 5 years in prison.

When a person voluntarily causes the death of another person on purpose, this ismurder.

When someone is doing something illegal and causes someone’s death without specifically intending to, this is manslaughter.

Attempted murder is when someone tries to commit murder but fails. The aggressor must have had the specific intention to kill, but his plan just didn't work out.

Here are some examples:

• Victoria never got along with her ex-boss. She waits for the ex-boss outside her old office. As soon as she sees her boss, Victoria takes aim and shoots her. Victoria had planned this attack for quite some time. This is murder because Victoria had the specific intention to kill.
  
  
• Victoria is admiring her brother-in-law’s new hunting rifle. She is aware that the rifle is loaded. Knowing that she has never handled a firearm and that there is a risk she could hurt someone, Victoria carelessly shoots in the direction of the neighbor’s house, separated from her brother-in-law’s by a cedar hedge. The neighbour who was standing behind the hedge dies instantly. This is manslaughter because Victoria had no intention of killing her neighbour, but she has shown criminal negligence.
  
  
• Victoria waits for her ex-boss outside her house with the intention of killing her. She can’t handle the fact that she was laid off the week before. Finally, her ex-boss comes out of the house and Victoria shoots her in the knee. She missed her target! This is attempted murder because Victoria had the specific intention of killing, but she didn’t achieve her goal.

Anyone found guilty of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter gets a sentence of life in prison.

A first degree murder is one that is “planned" and "deliberate.”

“Premeditated” means planned in advance, even if the plan was hatched just a few minutes beforehand. To be “deliberate”, the murderer must have the intelligence or capacity to understand his actions, and must have taken time to reflect on the consequences of these actions. To be murder in the first degree, both of these elements must be present.

However, the Criminal Code has exceptions to this rule: some murders will be considered to be in the first degree even if they aren’t planned and deliberate

A murder is in the second degree if it isn’t in the first degree.

A few examples:

• Victoria doesn’t get along well with her neighbour and has had it with his dog’s constant barking. She has had it: she wants to get rid of her neighbour while he is asleep. She draws up a plan and executes it. By the time she goes and kills him, she has thought long and hard about it. This is first degree murder. It was planned and deliberate.
  
  
• Victoria is stopped by the police for speeding. She goes crazy with rage, pulls out her gun and shoots the police officer. This is first degree murder, even if the murder wasn’t planned and deliberate. It is considered to in the first degree because it falls under an exception in the Criminal Code . This exception says that murdering a police officer who is carrying out his duties is murder in the first degree.
  
  
• Victoria goes to see her ex-boss to try to get hired back. It doesn’t go very well for her and an argument breaks out. Victoria strangles her ex-boss. This is second degree murder because it was not planned in advance.

The distinction between first and second degree murder becomes important when the court is considering whether the guilty person is eligible for conditional release. Normally, someone found guilty of first degree murder would have to wait longer before becoming eligible for conditional release than someone found guilty of second degree murder.

To learn more, consult our Infosheet Conditional Release.

Kidnapping happens when the offender takes a person with the intent to imprison that person against their will, or to detain the person for a ransom or service.

Example: in the middle of the night Boris goes into Anastasia’s house. He grabs her, takes her with him to a house in the country and tries to convince her to have sexual relations with him.

The maximum sentence for the offence of kidnapping is life imprisonment. If a firearm was used during the offence, the minimum sentence is 4 years in prison.

For forcible confinement, the evidence must show that the aggressor kept someone in a place against his will.

Example: Boris enters Anastasia’s house. Boris is aggressive and shouts loudly. Anastasia wants to leave the house to find a safe place, but Boris keeps her from leaving by threatening her with violence. This lasts all night.

The maximum sentence for forcible confinement is 10 years in prison.

As a general rule, the attacker cannot defend himself against criminal charges by saying that the victim didn’t resist. This can only be a defence in court for the attacker if he can prove that the victim didn’t resist for some reason other than his violent, aggressive or threatening behaviour.

This is a separate crime. It happens when a person kidnaps or has someone else kidnap a person under 16 without the permission and against the wishes of the child’s father or mother, the child’s tutor or the person who has legal custody of the child.

The sentence for this crime is imprisonment for up to 5 years.

Yes. A parent, tutor or other person with legal custody of a child under 14 who kidnaps, keeps, hides or harbours this child commits a crime. This is the case whether or not a Canadian family court has made a decision about the custody of the child.

The evidence must show that the person who took the child had the intent to deprive the parent, tutor, or any other person with custody, of the possession of that child.

A person cannot be found guilty of this crime if the other parent (or tutor, etc.) agreed to let the child stay with the person who took the child.

On the other hand, the fact that the child wanted to leave is not a defence for the accused.

For example, let's say that Peng and Chang are separated. They have a little girl, Liu. The family court decided on joint custody between the parents: each parent will have Liu every second week. Peng takes the child the first week. At the end of this week, Peng hides the child at his aunt’s home to prevent Chang from coming and taking her. Peng has just committed a crime.

A person found guilty of this crime faces up to 10 years in prison.