This case was heard in the Nova Scotia Provincial Court.

The Defendant, Eric Barnett Russell, was charged with hunting moose without a license under section 4(5) of the Moose Hunting Regulations and hunting moose out of season under section 5(2) of the Wildlife Act of Nova Scotia. Mr. Russell argued that these charges were based on inadmissible evidence in accordance with section 24(2) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Court found that the conservation officers were doing their jobs properly by entering the defendant’s home because they were responding to a complaint about a gunshot from a neighbor. The evidence was plain and visible to the officers upon arrival as Mr. Russel had a fresh moose carcass hanging in his open garage. When the officers later returned to seize the moose carcass, they had obtained a valid search warrant. The Court found no evidence to suggest that the actions of the officers were unlawful or had forced the defendant to incriminate himself. The Court concluded that the evidence in question was admissible.

View the Decision on CanLII: https://www.canlii.org/en/ns/nspc/doc/2002/2002nspc18/2002nspc18.html

Disclaimer:
Case briefs in our Resource Library are drafted by law students who work or volunteer with East Coast Environmental Law, and East Coast Environmental Law does not guarantee their fullness or accuracy. Library users should not rely on case briefs as comprehensive accounts of the issues, facts, reasoning, or outcomes at stake in any given case. 

If you require more detailed information about a court decision or legal issue, please consider using our Environmental Law Inquiry Service to request information from our staff.