Hello,
I am an American citizen seeking regular entry into Canada to visit my girlfriend, and also meet her family and friends. I am currently banned for having a pending court case. The court case has been resolved with a “continuance without a finding”. On Feb. 8th, 2013, the case will be dismissed. I was charged in Massachusetts with Driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor (Chapter 90, Section 24). In court I admitted that the state has evidence to show that my BAC was .08, thirty minutes after I was driving the car. Since in MA it is a crime to be driving with .08, and in Canada it is a crime to be driving with a BAC exceeding .08, the MA law is broader in scope. Therefore from
“ENF 03"
If the foreign enactment is broader than the Canadian statute, or if the text includes situations
that do not lead to a criminal offence in Canada, there is no textual equivalence. It is then
necessary to examine the circumstances of the offence to see if there is an equivalency
nonetheless. When this situation arises, evidence should be submitted regarding the facts
that were proved in the criminal trial held outside Canada. If every essential element of the
Canadian offence was established in the foreign trial, there is an equivalence.
When a hearings officer has to submit such evidence in an admissibility hearing, they should
indicate it clearly to the member of the Immigration Division that, in order to establish the
equivalence, the third method suggested by the court in Danyan is used. The hearings officer
should identify for the benefit of the Immigration Division which constituting element(s) of the
Canadian offence is not found in the text of the foreign offence. The hearings officer should then
identify each element of the evidence (whether these elements are exhibits or part of a testimony)
entered in the record that establishes that the Canadian constituting elements are facts that were
established in the foreign trial.”
Since there is no evidence that I drove impaired or with a BAC exceeding .08, I do not believe I should be inadmissible to Canada. I am looking for a lawyer to make sure my case is handled properly, carefully and quickly.
I am an American citizen seeking regular entry into Canada to visit my girlfriend, and also meet her family and friends. I am currently banned for having a pending court case. The court case has been resolved with a “continuance without a finding”. On Feb. 8th, 2013, the case will be dismissed. I was charged in Massachusetts with Driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor (Chapter 90, Section 24). In court I admitted that the state has evidence to show that my BAC was .08, thirty minutes after I was driving the car. Since in MA it is a crime to be driving with .08, and in Canada it is a crime to be driving with a BAC exceeding .08, the MA law is broader in scope. Therefore from
“ENF 03"
If the foreign enactment is broader than the Canadian statute, or if the text includes situations
that do not lead to a criminal offence in Canada, there is no textual equivalence. It is then
necessary to examine the circumstances of the offence to see if there is an equivalency
nonetheless. When this situation arises, evidence should be submitted regarding the facts
that were proved in the criminal trial held outside Canada. If every essential element of the
Canadian offence was established in the foreign trial, there is an equivalence.
When a hearings officer has to submit such evidence in an admissibility hearing, they should
indicate it clearly to the member of the Immigration Division that, in order to establish the
equivalence, the third method suggested by the court in Danyan is used. The hearings officer
should identify for the benefit of the Immigration Division which constituting element(s) of the
Canadian offence is not found in the text of the foreign offence. The hearings officer should then
identify each element of the evidence (whether these elements are exhibits or part of a testimony)
entered in the record that establishes that the Canadian constituting elements are facts that were
established in the foreign trial.”
Since there is no evidence that I drove impaired or with a BAC exceeding .08, I do not believe I should be inadmissible to Canada. I am looking for a lawyer to make sure my case is handled properly, carefully and quickly.