Are the Provisions Overbroad or Vague?
[22] The applicant does not challenge the government’s legitimate interest in taking steps to prevent dog attacks on individuals. Rather, the applicant submits that the means the government is using to accomplish that objective are overbroad and vague and therefore contrary to s. 7 of the Charter. [23] The parties agree that there is no Charter right to own or breed a dog or to allow a dog to be without a muzzle or off-leash in public. Rather, the Charter, in particular s. 7, is triggered because a term of imprisonment may arise from a conviction under the Act. Section 7 of the Charter states that every person has the right to “life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice”. Because an individual may receive a term of imprisonment for a contravention of DOLA, the provisions of that Act must conform to the principles of fundamental justice. [24] Courts have traditionally given considerabl
