Unlawful Trespass Notice (Remedy)

Caselaw.Ninja, Riverview Group Publishing 2021 ©
Date Retrieved:	2024-11-23
CLNP Page ID:	2414
Page Categories:	[Interference of Reasonable Enjoyment (LTB)], [Human Rights]
Citation:	Unlawful Trespass Notice (Remedy), CLNP 2414, <https://rvt.link/dk>, retrieved on 2024-11-23
Editor:	Sharvey
Last Updated:	2024/09/24

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Ramnarine-Smith v. Havcare Investments Inc., 2018 HRTO 878 (CanLII)

[5] At the hearing, I heard the evidence of both applicants as well as D.R.S and K.W. Each of the witnesses adopted their witness statements as their evidence subject to questions from counsel for the applicants and the Tribunal. Ms. Ramnarine-Smith amended her witness statement in paragraph 6 where it states that Mr. Smith was out of the apartment following a trespass order for three days to state that her father was out of the unit for five or six weeks.

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[28] On January 15, 2016, the respondents caused a Trespass Notice to be issued against Mr. Smith based on the entirely false allegation by the respondents that his daughter did not want him in the unit.

[29] On the day of the incident, Mr. Smith had been out walking his dogs. He returned from the walk to find the personal respondent and an officer from the Toronto Police Service waiting for him. The personal respondent pointed him out to the officer and told the officer that Mr. Smith was a trespasser. The personal respondent told the officer that Ms. Ramnarine-Smith had told her that she wanted Mr. Smith out of their apartment. According to both applicants, none of this was true. Ms. Ramnarine-Smith denied that she ever told the personal respondent that her father was a trespasser and not wanted in their home. She also offered that if her father left her, she would have been homeless because he paid the rent. Ms. Ramnarine-Smith wrote a note to this effect for the police but this seemed to have had no impact on what happened to her father.

[30] The police officer attempted to hand Mr. Smith a Trespass Notice that had been handwritten by the personal respondent, but his hands were full so he could not take it. Mr. Smith did not understand what was happening and could not understand what was being said to him because of the noise of the dogs who were barking, the personal respondent’s yelling, and his hearing loss. Mr. Smith and the police officer went to his apartment. The police office became frustrated with the applicant and threatened him at one point with pepper spray. According to Mr. Smith, the police officer left the unit and went to speak to the superintendent/personal respondent. The officer did not give Mr. Smith the Trespass Notice that day and did not return.

[31] The police returned on January 18, 2016 to enforce the Trespass Notice. Ms. Ramnarine-Smith arrived before her father had been escorted out of the building and attempted to explain to the police that her father was a guest and that she did not want him to leave. The police explained that they could not withdraw a “ticket” once issued and accordingly Mr. Smith was required to leave the unit. He was given a short period of time to shower and gather a few things and was escorted out.

[32] Because Mr. Smith had nowhere to go he spent his first night on the subway. He testified that he was unable to find a washroom and was incontinent by urine and had to spend many hours in soaked clothing overnight. He testified that he spent two or three nights in a shelter, something he had never had to do before this incident. Ms. Ramnarine-Smith spoke with D.R.S., his former spouse, and arranged for her father to move in with his former spouse for a period of time before he was able to return to his home after the Trespass Notice was lifted.

[33] Mr. Smith had other difficulties taking care of himself during this time. When he was escorted out, he forgot to take any food and had no idea where to get food. He testified that he went hungry for a few days until his daughter was able to find him shelters and other facilities where he could get a meal. At other times, he would meet his daughter off site and receive food from her.

[34] The Trespass Notice was posted in the lobby of the building with Mr. Smith’s name in large letters across the top of the document.

[35] Mr. Smith testified at the hearing that this incident made him feel like a criminal. He testified that on a couple of occasions, he snuck in to retrieve personal items but otherwise he was kept from his home for 5 to 6 weeks.

[36] For Ms. Ramnarine-Smith, the eviction of her father from their home was very distressing. She did not feel comfortable being alone. She stayed with K.W. and her mother for periods of time while her father was subject to the Trespass Notice. The housing allowance which paid the rent was put in jeopardy.

[37] Ms. Ramnarine-Smith filed a T2 application at the Landlord and Tenant Board (“LTB”) in response to the trespass notice. The application asked that Mr. Smith be allowed to return to the building and also that the superintendents end the harassment of her father and stop “making fun of his disabilities.” On February 12, 2016, the LTB made an Interim Order stating that, until the case was resolved, Ms. Ramnarine-Smith and anyone whom she allowed into the building had a right to be present on the premises.

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