What is the test for wilfully obstructing a peace officer?
British Columbia, Canada
The following excerpt is from R. v. Llagas, 2014 BCPC 342 (CanLII):
In the case of The Queen v. Noel, which is a [1995] B.C.J. No. 1852 case from our Court of Appeal, Justice Wood speaking in obiter but technically and specifically dealing with this issue in order to provide guidance to lower courts talked about obstruction and he said the offence defined in s. 129(a) of wilfully obstructing a peace officer is conduct that is undertaken with the intention that it obstruct the individual in question in the execution of his duty. That intention cannot exist in the absence of knowledge that: (a) the individual obstructed is a peace officer or other person defined in s. 129(a); and (b) that individual is engaged in the execution of his duty. Each of those are circumstances essential to the completion of the offence, and knowledge of those circumstances is an essential component of the mens rea of the offence.
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