It is a situation that none of us ever wants to find ourselves in, but the reality is that some people will have encounters with the police and legal system at some point in their lives. This article aims to go over some basic information you’ll want to know to get you through the earliest stage of the criminal process if you’re ever accused of a crime.

The first stage of the criminal process is that the police arrest a person accused of a crime.  At this point, a police officer would have sworn a written statement before a Justice of the Peace stating that he/she believes that the accused has committed an offence. Criminal charges normally involve a violation of the Criminal Code, but they can involve violations of other statutes (legislative documents) as well, such as the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act or numerous other statutes.