Ontario judge recalls lawyers in supervised consumption site case [Video]

The Ontario judge overseeing the legal challenge of the province’s ban on supervised consumption sites that are within 200 metres of schools and daycares unexpectedly recalled court Monday in a bid to understand whether he had all the facts to decide the case.

Justice John Callaghan heard arguments in late March from The Neighbourhood Group, which runs a consumption site in downtown Toronto. The organization, along with two of its users, argued the new law violates the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms because the sites save lives.

The province says the legislation violates neither and its lawyers argued the case is merely about regulating the sites’ locations.

The case drew numerous interveners, including neighbours who supported the government’s new law and some who disagreed with the province’s approach. Among the interveners was another supervised consumption site in Toronto, harm reduction workers and the City of Toronto’s board …