by Supriya Dwivedi, The Huffington Post, January 28, 2013
The essential issue before the Supreme Court was whether the provisions in the Criminal Code unjustifiably infringed on a woman’s right to “life, liberty and security of the person,” as guaranteed by section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In a split 5-2 judgment, with no opinion garnering more than two signatures, the Court found that s. 251 of the Criminal Code violated s. 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and could not be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society as per s. 1 of the Charter.
