KINGSTON, ONT. – The Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF) is happy to share that the Crown has decided to withdraw the ticket issued to an Ontario woman after her privacy was breached by a drone spying on her while she was waiting at an intersection.
On May 7, 2025, the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous for privacy reasons, was stopped at a red light in Kingston, Ont., when she spotted a large drone hovering outside her car window. Concerned that the drone operator might be doing something illegal or invading her privacy, she took out her phone and snapped a picture.
A few minutes later, police pulled her over and handed her a $500 ticket under section 78.1(a) of the Highway Traffic Act for using her phone while driving. Her license was suspended for three days. She faced nearly $900 in fines and fees as a result, along with three demerit points if found guilty at trial.
Authorities revealed that they had deployed a drone to zoom in on drivers inside their vehicles, capturing detailed footage of hands, arms, and phone screens as part of an enforcement operation targeting distracted driving. Images from this operation were later shared publicly on social media.
Josh Dehaas, Counsel for the CCF, stated that police using drones to spy on unsuspecting drivers constitutes an unreasonable search and infringes upon the reasonable expectation of privacy guaranteed by section 8 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
“Using a high-powered drone purchased to assist with purposes like accident reconstruction and finding missing persons to record unsuspecting people inside their cars including what’s on their phone screens is unacceptable,” said Dehaas.
“The enforcement of distracted driving laws is important but it cannot be used as an excuse to normalize drone surveillance,” Dehaas added.
Christine Van Geyn, Litigation Director for the CCF, emphasized that Canadians shouldn’t have to worry about being secretly filmed by police while sitting in their own cars.
“The Charter protects us from precisely this kind of unchecked surveillance,” said Van Geyn. “Citizens must be able to go about their daily lives without being literally watched from above by their government.”
The resident whose ticket has been marked for withdrawal expressed gratitude toward the CCF for its efforts in this case.
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