It took 20 years, from 1993 until the Supreme Court rendered its decision last year, for the constitutional problems inherent in this section as it was to come before the courts. In 20 more years, I don't know whether I will be practising criminal law; maybe I'll be relaxing on a beach somewhere. But when you're dealing with legislation directed at situations that arise very rarely but for which it is very important that they play out fully in court and that the matters proceed to conclusion, if they reach the court stage, it would be our position that you would want to have the legislation as narrowly defined and as specific as possible so as to eliminate the very problem that arose in the Tse case, in which you have very serious crimes that make their way to the court but don't necessarily go to completion because there is an ambiguity in the section.
Certainly, if a situation arose in which we have a “person employed for the preservation and maintenance of the public peace”, that more expansive definition, who isn't necessarily a police officer, or a constable, or a sergeant, or an RCMP officer, it would create problems. Practically speaking, I don't think it is likely to arise, but one would think you would want to have the legislation as clear as possible.
I doubt you would get the constables walking the beat on the street to apply and use this provision. They would probably need, just organizationally, to get approval for the resources and go up through the chain of command. But having said that, why wouldn't you incorporate that into the legislation to have it be a check and balance?