[96] I accept that in some circumstances, the fact that evidence could have been obtained without a violation of an individual’s rights may aggravate the seriousness of a breach: Collins v. The Queen (1987), 1987 CanLII 84 (SCC), 33 C.C.C. (3d) 1, at page 20 (S.C.C.). But that is not this case. As a matter of common sense, the fact that it did not matter to the applicant whether he was told certain things is relevant to the seriousness of the failure to tell him. To put the matter the other way round, if those things did matter, surely it would make the failure to inform him more serious. Apart from the breaches in relation to the consents, the behaviour of the police was completely unobjectionable. Throughout, they treated the applicant with respect. They did not jump to conclusions about his guilt. In a real sense, it was his idea to become a participant in their investigation. I appreciate that they would have come to him eventually, but they did not have to because he signed up on his own.
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