Domestic Assault Charges in Newmarket: When the Complainant Wants the Charge Dropped

In many domestic assault cases that come out of York Region, the call we get is not only from the person charged. Sometimes it is from the complainant, who says the police misunderstood, that things were blown out of proportion, or that they simply want their family back together. They want to know how to “drop the charges.”

This article is written for both people in that situation. It explains what the complainant can actually do, what the accused must not do, and how a domestic assault case charged by York Regional Police moves through the Newmarket courthouse when the complainant no longer supports it. We have written separately about the legal principles behind offside complainants; this piece is about the practical steps, in order.

The Short Version

A complainant in Ontario cannot withdraw a criminal charge. Only the Crown can. The complainant’s wishes matter, and they can be communicated properly, but they are one factor among several. Meanwhile, the release conditions that keep the two of you apart stay in force until they are formally changed, no matter what either of you wants. If both of you understand those two points from the beginning, you will avoid the most common and most damaging mistakes.

Question 1: Who Decides Whether the Case Goes Ahead?

Once York Regional Police lay a domestic assault charge, the case belongs to the Crown Attorney’s office at the Newmarket courthouse, 50 Eagle Street West. The Crown reviews the file and decides whether there is a reasonable prospect of conviction and whether prosecution is in the public interest. The complainant is a witness in that process, not a party to it.

That means the complainant cannot sign a form, send a letter, or make a phone call that ends the case. What they can do is make their position known to the people who make the decision, and do so in a way that the Crown will take seriously.

Question 2: What Can the Complainant Do?

If you are the complainant, you have several legitimate options:

• Speak with the Victim/Witness Assistance Program. This is a court-based Ministry of the Attorney General program that serves victims and witnesses in intimate partner violence cases, among others. According to the Ministry, it can share information about the case, explain the court process, give you copies of court orders such as bail conditions, and work with the Crown attorney to include your input and concerns. Participation is free and voluntary.
• Tell the Crown your position directly, in writing or through the program. Explain what you want, including whether you want contact restored.
• Get your own legal advice. Ontario offers eligible victims and survivors of intimate partner violence up to eight hours of free, confidential legal advice by phone or video, delivered province-wide by the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic. This service is separate from the Crown and from the accused’s lawyer. Independent advice is important, because the lawyer for the accused cannot advise you.
• Consider a sworn statement. Some complainants choose to swear an affidavit setting out their position. Whether that is wise depends on the facts, and it should be discussed with your own lawyer first.

What the complainant should not do is coordinate any of this with the accused while a no-contact condition is in place. A statement that appears to have been drafted or prompted by the accused tends to carry little weight, and it can lead to further charges.

Question 3: What Must the Accused Not Do?

If you are the person charged, this is the most important section of the article.

• Do not contact the complainant, even to say you are sorry, even if they reach out first, and even if they say they have spoken to the Crown. Your conditions bind you, and the complainant cannot waive them.
• Do not ask anyone else to contact them for you. Indirect communication is still communication.
• Do not ask the complainant to recant or change their story. Beyond breaching your conditions, pressuring a witness can lead to far more serious charges.
• Do preserve anything they send you. Messages from the complainant can be relevant evidence of their state of mind. Screenshot them, do not reply, and give them to your lawyer. Our guide on exporting text messages for your lawyer explains how.

A breach charge is a separate criminal offence, and it does not automatically disappear if the domestic charge is later withdrawn. See our article on why breach charges are not always dropped with the underlying charge.

Question 4: Why Might the Crown Continue Anyway?

Domestic prosecutions do not always depend entirely on the complainant’s testimony at trial. Depending on the file, the Crown may look to:

• the 911 call, which may be admissible even if the complainant later testifies differently
• statements the complainant gave police at the scene or at the station, particularly if they were recorded
• police observations, photographs, and any medical records
• other witnesses, including neighbours or family members

If the complainant’s original statement was recorded, it may be admissible for its truth at trial under the procedure described in the offside complainants article linked above. That is why a recantation, on its own, does not guarantee a withdrawal.

The Crown can also require the complainant to attend court by subpoena. A complainant who does not want to testify is still a compellable witness, and a reluctant witness is not the same as one who will help the defence. How the complainant actually testifies, if the case reaches trial, is difficult to predict, and that uncertainty cuts both ways. It is one reason the defence prepares for trial on the evidence as a whole, rather than relying on the complainant’s current position.

It is also worth knowing what happens if a case does end in a conviction. Section 718.2(a)(ii) of the Criminal Code requires a sentencing court to treat evidence that the offender abused an intimate partner or a family member as an aggravating factor. The complainant’s forgiveness does not remove that factor, although the circumstances of the relationship may still be relevant to the sentence.

Question 5: How Does a Case Like This Actually Resolve?

When the complainant does not support the prosecution, the realistic outcomes usually include one of the following:

• Withdrawal, if the Crown concludes there is no longer a reasonable prospect of conviction.
• A peace bond under section 810 of the Criminal Code, with the charge withdrawn. A peace bond lasts up to 12 months and can include no-contact or consent-based contact terms. See our full article on peace bonds in Ontario.
• A resolution involving counselling, sometimes combined with a peace bond.
• Trial, if the Crown believes it can prove the case without the complainant’s support, or if the accused wants to be fully cleared.

Counselling often comes up in these discussions. Ontario’s Partner Assault Response (PAR) program, as described by the Ministry of the Attorney General, is a program of 12 group education and counselling sessions for people charged with offences involving domestic violence, delivered by community agencies. Participants ordered to complete it must attend all 12 sessions, and fees are set by the provider based on income. PAR agencies also contact victims and current partners to offer safety planning and support. Whether counselling forms part of a resolution in your case, and what the Crown will require, depends on the file.

Question 6: Can Contact Be Restored Before the Case Ends?

Yes, in many cases, but only through a formal change to the release conditions. If you were released by police on an undertaking, it can be varied with the written consent of the accused and the prosecutor under section 502(1) of the Criminal Code, or by application to a justice. A release order from a bail hearing can also be varied. The complainant’s independently communicated position is often the most important factor in the Crown’s decision. Our bail variations guide covers the process, and our article on bail hearings in Newmarket explains how the local bail court works if you have not yet been released.

A common middle step is a condition allowing contact only with the complainant’s written, revocable consent. The complainant can withdraw that consent at any time, and the no-contact condition then applies again immediately.

What This Means for You

If you are the complainant: you have a voice in this process, but it works through the Crown, the Victim/Witness Assistance Program, and your own lawyer, not through the accused. You cannot end the case yourself.

If you are the accused: the complainant’s position can matter a great deal, but only if you stay entirely out of it. The fastest way to lose the benefit of a supportive complainant is to breach your conditions.

How Mor Fisher Can Help

We act for people charged with domestic assault at the Newmarket courthouse. When a complainant is offside, our work includes putting the full picture in front of the Crown, pursuing variations of release conditions, and preparing the case for trial in parallel so that the Crown knows it will be tested. We act only for the accused. If the complainant wants legal advice, we will suggest they seek it independently. If you are travelling to court for the first time, our Newmarket courthouse guide and Newmarket location page cover the practical details.

If you are facing a domestic assault charge in York Region and the complainant does not want the case to go ahead, contact Mor Fisher LLP at 705-721-6642 or through our contact page. A supportive complainant is a real factor in these cases, and handling it correctly from the start makes a difference.