Tag Archive for: DV Pledge

charged with possesion and trafficking donna pledge criminal lawyer toronto

Recent Success – Charged with Trafficking and Possession of Methamphetamines (May 2019)

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My client was charged with Trafficking in Methamphetamines and Possession for the purposes of Trafficking in Methamphetamines. Both charges were discharged.

The Scenario

My client was charged with Trafficking in Methamphetamine and Possession for the purposes of Trafficking in Methamphetamine as a result of surveillance by the police over a period of approximately one month. It was alleged that my client trafficked 82 grams of Methamphetamine, and as a result was arrested along with another individual. Subsequently, the police obtained two search warrants to search two residences, associated with my client.

During the search of one of the residences, several items with my clients name on it were found. Located in the other residence was 81 grams of Methamphetamine in a woman’s size 8 Michael Kors boot. The Crown further tried to establish that because my client and another individual picked up a third individual, who later was found to have 82 grams of Methamphetamine in his possession, and drove around the block and then dropped him back off, that they sold him the drug. As a result, the police arrested my client along with another individual for the charges as described above.

Our Process

At the Preliminary Inquiry, the police were called and provided evidence with respect to the surveillance they had conducted on my client and the items recovered as a result of the search warrants. On that basis, the crown argued that there was enough evidence to proceed to trial. I argued that the evidence was not sufficient to get over the threshold of the Preliminary Inquiry and the court agreed and the charges were discharged.

Get the Best Defence: DV Pledge 

It is important to have a lawyer representing you – who at every opportunity will argue to have the charges thrown out. One need not wait for trial. I, Donna Pledge, am one such lawyer.

Call 416-630-8702 or click here to email. 

Donna V. Pledge, Barrister & Solicitor 

Donna V Pledge, is a highly experienced criminal lawyer in Toronto with over twenty-five years of experience in the area of criminal offences. She has been successfully defending clients since 1992. She has earned the reputation of a tough and no-nonsense lawyer who can get her clients out of any criminal case with either a full acquittal or a very light sentence. Donna Pledge represents her clients in courts all over Ontario. 

Recent Success Possession of Marijuana - Donna V Pledge Criminal Lawyer - York Region

Recent Success – Charged with Possession of Marijuana (January 2019)

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My client was charged with Possession for the Purposes of Trafficking Marijuana, involving over 70 pounds of marijuana. The charge was withdrawn as a result of filing several Charter applications to establish that the search warrant executed on my client’s residence and vehicle was unlawful.  

The Scenario 

My client was charged as a result of a police investigation where there was surveillance of my client and two other individuals over a period of a few months. During that surveillance, my client was alleged to have been seen travelling from one address to another and removing bags alleged to contain marijuana. The police obtained a search warrant which was executed on my client’s residence and on his vehicle. As the result of the search, several bags were found in the trunk of my client’s vehicle containing over 70 pounds of marijuana.  

Our Process 

I brought an application to declare the search warrant unlawful and request an order excluding all the marijuana found as a result of that search warrant. During the cross examination of the affiant of the search warrant, it became apparent that there were several inconsistencies, misstatements, and inaccurate facts, in the information contained in the search warrant. The exposure of all these problems contained in the search warrant reflected on all the police witnesses and their evidence. As a result, the crown for the prosecution determined that there was no reasonable prospect of conviction and withdrew the charge.  

Get the Best Defence: DV Pledge 

When reviewing any case one must be cognizant of the fact that although on paper, the crown’s case may appear to be very strong, in practice it is very possible to have it dismissed or withdrawn. Even the strongest cases – when tested through cross examination of the witnesses (including police witnesses), expose significant problems with the crown’s case and as a result it may be dismissed or withdrawn. When choosing a lawyer, it is important to choose one that is willing and able to review the case in more depth than just reading the disclosure provided – as this may be the difference between winning the case and losing.  

Donna Pledge is one such lawyer that can win a losing case.  

Call 416-630-8702 or click here to email. 

Donna V. Pledge, Barrister & Solicitor 

Donna V Pledge, is a highly experienced criminal lawyer in Toronto with over twenty-five years of experience in the area of criminal offences. She has been successfully defending clients since 1992. She has earned the reputation of a tough and no-nonsense lawyer who can get her clients out of any criminal case with either a full acquittal or a very light sentence. Donna Pledge represents her clients in courts all over Ontario. 

Charged with Impaired Driving Toronto

Recent Successes – Charged with Impaired Driving: R. v. J.B.L. (February 2018)

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Charged with Impaired Driving TorontoCharged with Impaired Driving and Driving with Over 80 mgs of Alcohol in 100 mgs of Blood

My client was charged with Impaired Driving and Driving with Over 80 mgs of Alcohol in 100 mgs of Blood. Both charges were dismissed after trial.

On the evening that my client was charged he had done everything right. He went to a friend’s uncle’s residence to get together with his nephew who was visiting from away. My client consumed a quantity of alcohol, to the extent that he did not want to drive home. As a result my client’s friend, the nephew, drove him home, and his uncle followed in another vehicle. The intention was that the uncle was going to follow to pick up the nephew after my client was dropped off with his vehicle.

An Unfortunate Misunderstanding

Unfortunately, on the way home the nephew ended up causing an accident. As circumstances had it my client exited his vehicle, from the passenger side first and approached the other driver and apologized. My client’s actions, including providing his Driver License, Insurance and Registration gave the impression to the other driver that in fact my client was driving, which he was not. However, as a result and ultimately against my client’s protestations that he was not driving, my client was arrested for the charges of Impaired Driving charged and Driving with Over 80 mgs of Alcohol in 100 mgs of Blood.

Our Process

When my client came to me the first thing we did was ensure we had the necessary witnesses, the nephew and uncle, for Trial. We had both of them provide written statements that they signed and we filed in my client’s file. Next, we checked for any video coverage from the neighbouring buildings. We were fortunate enough to obtain video coverage of the accident, however because of the distance we were unable to identify who exited from the driver’s side and passenger side of my client’s vehicle after the accident. Therefore, the video coverage was inconclusive as to whether or not my client was the driver.

Therefore, it was essential that I be able to raise  reasonable doubt by cross examining the witness/driver that my client’s nephew hit, in order to establish that he could have been mistaken as to who the driver of my client’s vehicle was. I was able to establish through cross examination of the other driver that in fact circumstances could have caused him to mistakenly identify my client as the driver.

Get the Best Defence: DV Pledge

As such, although it is very important to do everything you can including gathering witnesses and evidence to support your case, it is most important that you hire experienced defence counsel to represent you. Donna Pledge, Barrister and Solicitor, is an experienced criminal defence counsel that could ultimately make the difference between winning and loosing your case.

Call 416-630-8702 or click here to email

Donna V. Pledge, Barrister & Solicitor

Donna V Pledge, is a highly experienced criminal lawyer in Toronto with over twenty-five years of experience in the area of criminal offences. She has been successfully defending clients since 1992. She has earned the reputation of a tough and no-nonsense lawyer who can get her clients out of any criminal case with either a full acquittal or a very light sentence. Donna Pledge represents her clients in courts all over Ontario.

How Credit Card Theft Charges Can Impact Your Life

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When you are found guilty of credit card theft, a criminal offence, you will be facing a number of harsh consequences. Those consequences are not limited to the legal penalties alone either. You will also face travel restrictions, possible complications with your financial and employment situations, and an effect on your personal life.

Legal Consequences

When you are charged with credit card theft, it is a criminal charge that can result in some combination of jail and a fine if the charge is a summary offence, meaning that you will be tried by a judge only. The maximum penalty for jail time is six months, and the maximum fine is $5,000.

However, if the theft charge is indictable you will have to be tried by a judge and jury after a pretrial establishes that there is enough evidence to go to trial. If you are convicted, you could face up to 10 years in prison.

Travel Consequences

Once you are convicted of a criminal offence like credit card theft in Canada, it affects your ability to travel to other countries. Most importantly, you may not be able to travel to the United States.

United States immigration laws may bar entry, and deem it illegal to try to enter the country, if you have a criminal record. No matter how long ago you were found guilty, or the extent of the crime, you cannot enter.

Other countries also issue travel bans, and before you can travel again outside of the country, you will have to disclose your criminal record and could be refused entry.

Financial/Employment Consequences

In addition to paying high fines, you could also be put into jail or prison, both of which will have a detrimental impact on your employment earnings. Over the long term, the charge could impact your credit score if you run into financial difficulties, which could affect your ability to buy assets on credit, and of course, to have credit cards of your own.

If you do have a job at the time of your record, you could lose it if you have to serve time, or if a condition of your employment, such as law enforcement, requires a clean record. Your future career choices could also be limited, since some professions will not grant licences to people convicted of a criminal offence.

And even though no employer can access your criminal record history without your consent, employers often seek permission to view it and take it into consideration when hiring decisions are made. Careers in banking, payroll and some human resources, cashiers, or positions working with children could all be limited with a criminal record.

A criminal record could also affect your ability to get certain university professional degrees. For studies in financial services, for example, credit card theft could result in being denied entry into accounting or bookkeeping. Many other programs, like law, dentistry, and medicine may also require background checks.

Personal Consequences

For most people, dealing with a criminal record can also affect personal relationships, and credit card theft is no exception. A conviction for stealing someone else’s credit card could leave you isolated from family and friends concerned that their possessions are equally vulnerable to your criminal activity. The stress caused by time in jail or prison along with the financial and employment strain alone could jeopardize personal relationships with spouses or partners, and children.

If you are facing criminal charges and need legal advice, book your appointment today with Toronto criminal defence lawyer Donna V. Pledge.