What Counts as Criminal Harassment in Canada?

Criminal harassment is defined in the Criminal Code of Canada under section 264. Some people would refer to it as stalking. Criminal harassment is when someone continually bothers someone else making that person fear for their safety or the safety of someone else known to that person.

It is a crime that demonstrates a pattern of behaviour continuing to harass someone else.

What counts as criminal harassment?

Criminal harassment as defined in the Criminal Code lists specifically four behaviours:

• Repeatedly following the person (or someone known to them).
  
  • So, this can mean following them to work or to leisure activities. Turning up randomly in the grocery store when the person is food shopping or following the person into a bar or coffee shop are examples. 
• Repeatedly communicating with the person (or someone known to them).
  • This might be calling or emailing or texting or messaging or even sending messages through a third party, such as sending flowers or gifts.
• Watching and waiting
  • This means standing or parking outside someone’s home or workplace or place of leisure activities and watching and/or perhaps photographing that person.
• Engaging in threatening activities
  • This could be anything from leaving threatening voicemail messages to telling the person that he or she will never be free of the aggressor. Or saying you are going to hurt the person, by voice, written document or message.

The Crown only has to show evidence of one of these four things listed above for someone to be found guilty of criminal harassment. However, more of than one obviously makes a stronger case. 

If you are charged with this crime, hire a lawyer as soon as possible, one who specializes in criminal cases.

If you have been charged with a criminal offence, please contact Gagan Nahal for a free consultation in Vancouver at (604) 527-4769 as soon as possible. Mr. Nahal’s law practice focuses on criminal defence law, and he has extensive experience in this area of the law. 

Gagan Nahal is a criminal defence lawyer based in Surrey, British Columbia, although he has represented clients across Canada. He works vigorously and tirelessly defending his clients.

If you have any questions about this article or you would like to talk to Mr. Nahal, please call him directly at (604) 527-4769.