What is the need to assess the totality of the circumstances and what is the impact of the "totality" of an informant’s tip?
Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
The following excerpt is from R. v. Warford, 2001 NFCA 64 (CanLII):
The need to assess the “totality of the circumstances” is also referenced by Wilson J. in Debot v. The Queen, 1989 CanLII 13 (SCC), [1989] 2 S.C.R. 1140. (The majority disagreed with the decision of Wilson J. on two points, not relevant to this issue.) Wilson J. said, at page 1172: In my opinion, it should not be necessary for the police to confirm each detail in an informant’s tip so long as the sequence of events actually observed conforms sufficiently to the anticipated pattern to remove the possibility of innocent coincidence. As I noted earlier, however, the level of verification required may be higher where the police rely on an informant whose credibility cannot be assessed or where fewer details are provided and the risk of innocent coincidence is greater.
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