Criminal harassment sentence in Canada: the short answer

A harassment sentence depends on the facts, the Crown’s election, and the person’s circumstances. For a criminal harassment sentence Canada case, section 264 of the Criminal Code creates a hybrid offence: there is no criminal harassment minimum sentence, but the maximum penalty is higher if the Crown proceeds by indictment than if it proceeds summarily.

For criminal harassment, the maximum penalty is 10 years incarceration if proceeded by indictment. However, if proceeded summarily, the penalty for criminal harassment is 2 years less a day in jail or a $5000 fine.

— Jeffrey I. Reisman, criminal defence lawyer

The wording “or” in the quotation should be checked against the current version of section 264: the summary-conviction provision may permit imprisonment, a fine, or both. A maximum is not a prediction of what will happen in any individual case. The Ontario Court of Justice decides sentence after considering the proven offence, the impact on the complainant, and the offender’s circumstances.

What criminal harassment means in Ontario

Criminal harassment is not simply unwanted or irritating behaviour. Under section 264 of the Criminal Code, the Crown must prove prohibited conduct, that the accused knew or was reckless about whether the other person was harassed, and that the conduct caused the other person reasonably to fear for their safety or the safety of someone they know.

“Safety” can include psychological safety; it is not limited to physical injury. The reasonable-fear requirement is assessed in context, including the relationship, the content and frequency of communications, prior events, and whether the conduct continued after clear requests to stop.

Types of prohibited conduct

Section 264 lists several types of prohibited conduct. A single event may be enough in some circumstances, but criminal-harassment allegations often concern a pattern rather than one awkward or unwanted exchange.

Conduct	What it can involve	Neutral example
Repeated following	Following a person or anyone known to them from place to place	Repeatedly appearing behind a former partner on their route to work
Repeated communication	Direct or indirect calls, texts, emails, messages, or contact through others	Sending messages from several accounts after being blocked
Watching or besetting	Watching or waiting outside a home, workplace, school, or another place	Waiting outside an apartment building on several occasions
Threatening conduct	Conduct directed at the person or anyone known to them that causes reasonable fear	Damaging property while making intimidating gestures nearby

The surrounding relationship and the full sequence matter. For example, repeated messages about collecting belongings may look very different from repeated accusatory messages sent after a breakup and after a clear request for no further contact.

Can text messages or online conduct be criminal harassment?

Yes. Texts, calls, emails, direct messages, posts, and communications sent through other people can support a criminal-harassment allegation if the legal elements are proven.

If you are accused, do not delete messages, edit screenshots, create new accounts, or ask friends to contact the complainant for you. Preserve the complete conversation, including dates, prior exchanges, and messages that may provide context. If you have a no-contact condition, follow it literally, even if the other person contacts you first, unless the condition is formally changed.

For example, a person charged after sending 40 messages over two nights may believe several messages were replies to messages later omitted from screenshots. The defence may need the full phone extraction or message history, but sending a new explanation to the complainant could create a separate allegation of breaching release conditions.

Can you go to jail for criminal harassment?

Yes, jail is legally available for criminal harassment in Canada, but it is not automatic. Section 264 has no mandatory minimum sentence; the maximum is up to 10 years on indictment or, on summary conviction, up to two years less a day, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.

Canadian courts do not use a fixed sentencing tariff for every criminal-harassment case. A court may consider probation, a fine, a conditional sentence where legally available, custody, or other lawful sentencing tools, depending on the offence and the offender. A sentence must follow the purposes and principles in the Criminal Code, including proportionality.

What affects a criminal harassment sentence?

A criminal harassment sentence is shaped by the seriousness of the conduct and the offender’s responsibility, not by a single standard range. The Crown and defence can make sentencing submissions and file evidence about the offence, its impact, and the accused person’s circumstances.

Factors that can increase seriousness include a lengthy or escalating pattern, threats, violence, substantial impact on the complainant, conduct in an intimate-partner context, a prior record, and breaching an undertaking, bail condition, restraining order, or probation order. Section 718.2(a)(ii) requires courts to treat abuse of an intimate partner or former intimate partner as an aggravating factor.

Potential mitigating factors can include an early guilty plea, genuine remorse, lack of a related record, demonstrated treatment or counselling efforts, and relevant mental-health, addiction, family, or employment circumstances. These factors do not erase the offence; their weight depends on reliable evidence and the facts.

Consider someone with no record who repeatedly calls a former partner for one evening after a volatile breakup, stops after police contact, and later pleads guilty with evidence of counselling. That is different from an allegation involving months of surveillance, threats, prior court orders, and continued contact after arrest. The court still decides the result based on the evidence and applicable law.

What happens after a criminal harassment charge in Ontario?

After a criminal harassment charge, the immediate priority is complying with release conditions and obtaining disclosure. The case then usually moves through Crown review, resolution discussions, and either a trial or a guilty plea followed by sentencing.

1. Police may release a person with an undertaking or other conditions, or the person may have a bail hearing.
2. Read every no-contact, communication, location, weapon, and residence condition exactly as written.
3. The Crown Attorney provides disclosure, which may include statements, screenshots, police notes, recordings, and digital records.
4. Counsel reviews the evidence, identifies legal and factual issues, and discusses possible resolution positions with the Crown.
5. If the case does not resolve, it proceeds toward trial in the Ontario Court of Justice; if there is a conviction or guilty plea, sentencing follows.

Do not try to solve the case directly with the complainant. In intimate-partner allegations, related allegations such as assault may arise; a domestic assault lawyer Toronto page explains the separate issues that can arise in those cases.

Can criminal harassment charges be dropped?

Criminal harassment charges can be withdrawn, but there is no reliable public percentage showing how often that happens. The complainant does not personally decide whether a prosecution continues; the Crown Attorney assesses whether there is a reasonable prospect of conviction and whether continuing is in the public interest.

A defence review may focus on identity, the complete message history, whether the complainant’s fear was objectively reasonable, whether the accused knew or was reckless about harassment, and whether the alleged conduct fits section 264. A complainant’s wishes may be relevant information, but they are not the final decision.

Criminal harassment, a police warning, and uttering threats

A police warning is not a conviction or a court order, but conduct after a warning may be relevant evidence about notice, intent, or recklessness. A warning does not give anyone permission to contact the other person in a way that breaches an existing condition or continues unwanted conduct.

Criminal harassment differs from uttering threats. Under section 264.1 of the Criminal Code, uttering threats concerns knowingly uttering, conveying, or causing a person to receive certain threats, while criminal harassment requires the separate elements described above. One is not automatically the “worst” charge; the alleged words, conduct, impact, and additional charges determine the seriousness of a case. If threats are alleged, speak with an uttering threats defence lawyer in Toronto about the specific allegations.

Could a first-time offender go to jail?

A first-time offender can receive jail for criminal harassment, but there is no automatic result. The court considers the seriousness and duration of the conduct, any threats or breach of conditions, the complainant’s impact, and mitigating circumstances before imposing sentence.

Having no record can matter, but it does not decide the case by itself. For broader answers about criminal procedure and sentencing, see the general criminal law faq.

Frequently asked questions about criminal harassment sentencing

What happens if you are found guilty of criminal harassment?

If you are found guilty, the court holds a sentencing hearing or receives sentencing submissions before imposing a lawful sentence. The result may include a fine, probation, custody, or another available sentence, depending on the proven facts and personal circumstances.

How long can jail be for criminal harassment?

The maximum jail term is 10 years if the Crown proceeds by indictment. On summary conviction, the current maximum should be confirmed from section 264, but it is generally up to two years less a day, with a possible fine.

What evidence matters in a criminal harassment case?

The full communications, screenshots with metadata, call logs, social-media records, video, witness evidence, prior requests to stop, police notes, and evidence bearing on reasonable fear can all matter. Context is important, so isolated screenshots may not tell the full story.

How should you deal with someone harassing you?

Preserve messages, dates, screenshots, and other evidence, and avoid retaliating or escalating the contact. If there is immediate danger, call 911; otherwise, consider reporting the conduct to police, including the Toronto Police Service where applicable.

What should you do next if you are accused?

Follow every release condition, preserve relevant material without altering it, and avoid discussing the allegation with the complainant or potential witnesses. Get legal advice before making a statement to police, agreeing to a peace bond under section 810, or taking steps that could affect the case.

Speak with a Toronto criminal defence lawyer

Early advice can help you understand criminal-harassment allegations, release conditions, digital evidence, and the court process before a misstep creates further problems.

Call 647-351-HELP (4357) or book a free consultation to discuss your case with Jeffrey I. Reisman.