Supreme Court of Canada to review Good Samaritan drug overdose case

During the appeal hearing in Saskatchewan, the Crown argued that the Good Samaritan Act did not apply because it prevents the police from charging or convicting people, but it doesn't mean they can't arrest or search.

Oh yeah no. That’s how you get a public even more scared to help people in distress.

This is the best summary I could come up with:

The Supreme Court of Canada will review the case of a man who was arrested for drug and firearm offences after police encountered him at the scene of an overdose.

The top court's examination is expected to clarify application of the federal Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, passed to help reduce deaths from substance use.

In September 2020, Paul Eric Wilson was at the scene of a woman's fentanyl overdose in Vanscoy, Sask.

The judge's ruling said Wilson's overarching argument was that the search leading to the incriminating items and the subsequent charges was incidental to the first "prohibited" arrest.

Pierre Hawkins, legal counsel for John Howard Society, led the charge as an intervenor in Wilson's case.

"We see this as the court sending a strong message to both police forces about arresting people in these situations and about training officers in those cases," Hawkins said.

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