A: Once a complaint is made to the police, it is not up to the complainant to decide whether or not charges are to be laid. It is the officer who decides what charges are to be laid if any. The charge might be an assault against you, and you may not have given a statement, but other witnesses may have done so. The charge can be laid without any input from you whatsoever. Furthermore, it is up to the Crown Prosecutor – not you and/or the police – to withdraw the charge.
If you have made a complaint, and later wish to “retract” that complaint, you may be at risk of perjuring yourself. To commit perjury means “to tell an intentional lie while under oath.” You should not lie on the stand while under oath, or attempt to hide if you are requested to testify at trial. The possible consequences of lying under oath or purposely avoiding trial include, but are not limited to:
1. being held in contempt of court,
2. being charged with offences,
3. receiving fines, and
4. possibly receiving jail time.
You risk facing more time in jail than your boy-/girl-friend would get if he/she was convicted, too. If you fail to appear in court to testify a Warrant for the Arrest of A Witness can be issued by the Judge, or the police may lay contempt of court charges against you.
If you wish to aid the accused, you can provide him/her with the monetary support to hire a lawyer. You should also hire a lawyer to speak to the Crown on your behalf, with the lawyer indicating that you do not wish to testify. If you cannot afford a lawyer, you can still speak to the Crown about your unwillingness to testify against the accused, although it is likely that you will be subpoenaed to show up anyway. If you do not show up in court to testify a warrant will be issued for your arrest.
Another way to aid the accused person would be to write, in your victim impact statement, how the incident has affected you; the steps that you and the accused will take in the future to avoid similar incidents from happening again; and your reasons for feeling that the accused person’s behavior will improve (e.g. counseling, anger management courses, and addictions therapy). You may also wish to include some of the accused person’s good points, such as the fact that he or she is a good provider, a good parent, etc.
Finally, for minor charges involving first-time offenders, his/her lawyer may be able to negotiate a Peace Bond, which would leave him/her without a criminal record.
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