Criminal Code

Marginal note:Contents of appearance notice, promise to appear and recognizance

• 501 (1) An appearance notice issued by a peace officer or a promise to appear given to, or a recognizance entered into before, an officer in charge or another peace officer shall

  • (a) set out the name of the accused;

  • (b) set out the substance of the offence that the accused is alleged to have committed; and

  • (c) require the accused to attend court at a time and place to be stated therein and to attend thereafter as required by the court in order to be dealt with according to law.

• Marginal note:Idem

  (2) An appearance notice issued by a peace officer or a promise to appear given to, or a recognizance entered into before, an officer in charge or another peace officer shall set out the text of subsections 145(5) and (6) and section 502.

• Marginal note:Attendance for purposes of Identification of Criminals Act

  (3) An appearance notice issued by a peace officer or a promise to appear given to, or a recognizance entered into before, an officer in charge or another peace officer may require the accused to appear at a time and place stated in it for the purposes of the Identification of Criminals Act, where the accused is alleged to have committed an indictable offence and, in the case of an offence designated as a contravention under the Contraventions Act, the Attorney General, within the meaning of that Act, has not made an election under section 50 of that Act.

• Marginal note:Signature of accused

  (4) An accused shall be requested to sign in duplicate his appearance notice, promise to appear or recognizance and, whether or not he complies with that request, one of the duplicates shall be given to the accused, but if the accused fails or refuses to sign, the lack of his signature does not invalidate the appearance notice, promise to appear or recognizance, as the case may be.

• Marginal note:Proof of issue of appearance notice

  (5) The issue of an appearance notice by any peace officer may be proved by the oral evidence, given under oath, of the officer who issued it or by the officer’s affidavit made before a justice or other person authorized to administer oaths or to take affidavits.