The bail hearing process is one of the most important aspects in which a judge will determine whether you should be kept in custody or be released into the community. In either case, your criminal matter will continue within the judicial process. If you are released, there will be conditions set by the court which must be followed. If there are any breaches of bail conditions, you may be sent back into custody.

In some circumstances, individuals are released with restrictive and/or intrusive bail conditions. At the same time, personal circumstances change which overlap with the imposed bail conditions. Bail variations can be sought with the consent of the Crown Attorney. When the Crown Attorney does not consent to the bail variation, the accused may have the ability to proceed with a bail review.

If you are not released after your bail hearing, you will be held in custody and considered detained. In some circumstances, an application can be made to the Superior Court of Justice to have a Justice review the bail hearing decision. If the Justice finds there are merits to this application, the presiding Justice may order you released.

These offences are governed by the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act which is federal legislation. The Act distinguishes illegal drugs by classifying them in separate schedules. This act regulates the possession, sale, import, export, production, assembly, distribution, transport, and delivery of controlled substances and precursors used in drugs. Individuals are commonly charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking offences and possession of controlled substance offences.

Some offences include the possession, unregistered use and trafficking of firearms. The use of firearms is highly regulated and is classified as prohibited firearms and restricted firearms.

The Criminal Code of Canada defines a criminal organization as a group that is composed of three or more persons in or outside Canada and that has as one of its main purposes or main activities the facilitation or commission of one or more serious offences that, if committed, would likely result in the direct or indirect receipt of a material benefit, including a financial benefit, by the group or by any of the persons who constitute the group.

A person commits assault when: a) without the consent of another person, he applies force intentionally to that other person directly or indirectly; b) he attempts or threatens, by an act or a gesture, to apply force to another person, if he has, or causes that other person to believe on reasonable grounds that he has. Present ability to effect his purpose; or c) while openly wearing or carrying a weapon or an imitation thereof, he accosts or impeded another person or begs.

The offence of sexual assault captures an extremely wide range of behaviour. Any physical application of force that is not consensual, and is done in circumstances of a sexual nature, can constitute a sexual assault.

Domestic violence can include; physical violence with the use of hands, objects or weapons. sexual violence, including threats, intimidation, physical force or using a position of power for sexual purposes.

Everyone commits robbery who: a) steals and for the purpose of extorting whatever is stolen or to prevent or overcome resistance to the stealing, uses violence or threats of violence to a person or property; b) steals from any person and, at the time he steals or immediately before or immediately thereafter, wounds, beats, strikes or uses any personal violence to a person or property; c) assaults any person with the intent to steal from him; or d) steals from any person while armed with an offensive weapon or imitation thereof.

Everyone who, by deceit, falsehood or other fraudulent means, whether or not it is a false pretence, defrauds the public or any person, whether ascertained or not, of any property, money or valuable security or any service.

Everyone commits theft who fraudulently and without colour of right takes, or fraudulently and without colour of right converts to his use or to the use of another person, anything, whether animate or inanimate, with intent (a) to deprive, temporarily or absolutely, the owner of it, or a person who has a special property or interest in it, of the thing or of his property or interest in it; (b) to pledge it or deposit it as security; (c) to part with it under a condition with respect to its return that the person who parts with it may be unable to perform; or (d) to deal with it in such a manner that it cannot be restored in the condition in which it was at the time it was taken or converted.

Essentially, attempted murder is a failed attempt to commit murder. Like 1st and 2nd degree murder, the Crown must prove that there was a specific intent to harm another person as well as the means and direct action is taken to do it.

Canadian law defines manslaughter as "a homicide committed without the intention to cause death, although there may have been an intention to cause harm".

Murder is first-degree murder when it is planned and deliberate.

A person commits homicide when, directly or indirectly, by any means, he causes the death of a human being. Culpable homicide is murder (a) where the person who causes the death of a human being (i) means to cause his death, or (ii) means to cause him bodily harm that he knows is likely to cause his death, and is reckless whether death ensues or not; (b) where a person, meaning to cause death to a human being or meaning to cause him bodily harm that he knows is likely to cause his death, and being reckless whether death ensues or not, by accident or mistake causes death to another human being, notwithstanding that he does not mean to cause death or bodily harm to that human being; or (c) if a person, for an unlawful object, does anything that they know is likely to cause death, and by doing so causes the death of a human being, even if they desire to affect their object without causing death or bodily harm to any human being.

All murder that is not first-degree murder is second-degree murder.