QUICK TAKEAWAY
Mischief: is the wilful destruction of property, making it dangerous or useless to others. Section 430 of the Criminal Code deals with the general charge of mischief, with higher penalties for mischief over $5,000. This section of the Code also contains separate charges if your mischief was done with a computer, related to school/educational facilities, war memorials or a cultural property.
Table of Contents:
What is Mischief?
Section 430 (1) of the Criminal Code defines mischief as the wilful destruction of property, making it dangerous or useless to others. This charge can also be laid if you obstruct or interferes with other people's lawful use and enjoyment of property. The Code also lists various mischief offences that are specific to the type of property.
Penalties
If the damage you cause to property exceeds $5,000 and the charge is treated as an indictable offence, the maximum punishment is 10 years in prison. Less severe sentences are given if the charge is prosecuted as a summary conviction. If the damage fell below $5,000, the maximum penalty is two years less a day for indictable offences and less severe if the charge is prosecuted as a summary conviction.
What Is Computer Mischief?
Section 430 (1.1) makes it an offence for you to wilfully destroy or alter computer data or to render it useless or ineffective. It is also a crime for you to interfere with the lawful use of computer data or to deny access to a person who is entitled to access the data.
Another computer-related offence is s. 430 (5.1). It is a crime to commit mischief with the operation of a computer or its data - or to omit from doing something with a computer or its data - that causes actual danger to other people's lives.
Penalties
If your computer-related mischief caused actual danger to the lives of others, this charge is guilty an indictable offence and you face a maximum penalty of life in prison. If your computer-related mischief did not endanger lives, the charge can still be treated as an indictable offence with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Less severe penalties are given for charges prosecuted as summary convictions.
What Is Religious Property / School Mischief?
Section 430 (4.1) makes it an offence for you to commit damage to property if your actions are motivated by bias or hate that is based on colour, race, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression or mental or physical disability.
Penalties
If the charge is treated as an indictable offence the maximum penalty is 10 years in prison, with less severe sentences if the charge is prosecuted as a summary conviction.
What Is War Memorial Mischief?
Section 430 (4.11) makes it an offence to damage or desecrate a building or structure that primarily serves as a monument to honour those killed in war. That includes a war memorial or cenotaph, cemeteries, and any object associated with honouring the fallen.
Penalties
If the offence is prosecuted by indictment, the maximum penalty is 10 years in prison. If the offence is treated as a summary conviction, the maximum penalty is two years less a day in jail. The Code also gives minimum punishments for charges treated as either indictable offices and summary convictions. They are:
- for a first offence, a fine not less than $1,000;
- for a second offence, imprisonment for at least 14 days; and
- for each subsequent offence, imprisonment for at least 30 days.
What Is Cultural Property Mischief?
Section 430 (4.2) makes it a crime to commit mischief in relation to cultural property as defined in Article 1 of the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, as set out in the Cultural Property Export and Import Act.
Penalties
If you are found guilty of a charge treated as an indictable offence you face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Less severe punishments are given if the charge is prosecuted as a summary conviction.
What the Crown Has to Prove
To win a mischief conviction the Crown prosecutorLawyers who prosecutes charges on behalf of the Crown has to show that you wilfully caused mischief to a property, computer data, a war memorial, school/religious centre or a cultural institution.
For any mischief charge, the Code states that you cannot be convicted if you were near someone’s home or any other place for the purpose of obtaining or communicating information.
When it comes to the charge of committing mischief with computers or their data, the Code lists three situations where your lawyer can argue you should not be convicted. They are:
- If you stopped working as a result of the failure to agree on any matter relating to your employment with your employer.
- If you stopped work as a result of that failure and a bargaining agent was involved, or
- If you stopped working due to concerns about your safety.
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Adrian R. Cleaver Legal Counsel
Glossary of Legal Terms
Crown prosecutor
Lawyers who act for the federal, provincial and territorial governments and prosecute people accused of crimes on behalf of the Crown.
