Two lower courts in British Columbia had acquitted Sharpe, citing the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Despite considerable inconvenience, embarrassment and pain to those arrested, the first two cases were clumsily resolved. John Robin Sharpe S harpe was arrested in 1995 and charged with two counts of possession of child pornography and two counts of distributing child pornography. In January 1999, the British Columbia Supreme Court acquitted him of possession of child porn. British Columbia appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Sharpe still faces charges for distributing child pornography.
The new child pornography law was rushed through Parliament in less than six weeks, becoming law on June 23, 1993. Afterward, Parliament promptly adjourned for the summer, then a federal election was called in the fall. Even MPs who helped frame the new law say it was a hasty piece of legislation, and so overly broad it would inevitably cause difficulties in the courts and require clarification. They admit, too, that not much thought was given to the protections of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Many child pornography cases across Canada have been on hold, pending the ruling of the Supreme Court in the John Robin Sharpe case.