Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46)
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Act current to 2024-09-16 and last amended on 2024-09-01. Previous Versions
PART IIOffences Against Public Order (continued)
Official Documents (continued)
Marginal note:Fraudulent use of certificate of citizenship
58 (1) Every person is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years or is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who, while in or outside Canada,
(a) uses a certificate of citizenship or a certificate of naturalization for a fraudulent purpose, or
(b) being a person to whom a certificate of citizenship or a certificate of naturalization has been granted, knowingly parts with the possession of that certificate with intent that it should be used for a fraudulent purpose.
Definition of certificate of citizenship and certificate of naturalization
(2) In this section, certificate of citizenship and certificate of naturalization, respectively, mean a certificate of citizenship and a certificate of naturalization as defined by the Citizenship Act.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 58
- 2019, c. 25, s. 8
Sedition
Marginal note:Seditious words
59 (1) Seditious words are words that express a seditious intention.
Marginal note:Seditious libel
(2) A seditious libel is a libel that expresses a seditious intention.
Marginal note:Seditious conspiracy
(3) A seditious conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to carry out a seditious intention.
Marginal note:Seditious intention
(4) Without limiting the generality of the meaning of the expression seditious intention, every one shall be presumed to have a seditious intention who
(a) teaches or advocates, or
(b) publishes or circulates any writing that advocates,
the use, without the authority of law, of force as a means of accomplishing a governmental change within Canada.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 60
Marginal note:Exception
60 Notwithstanding subsection 59(4), no person shall be deemed to have a seditious intention by reason only that he intends, in good faith,
(a) to show that Her Majesty has been misled or mistaken in her measures;
(b) to point out errors or defects in
(i) the government or constitution of Canada or a province,
(ii) Parliament or the legislature of a province, or
(iii) the administration of justice in Canada;
(c) to procure, by lawful means, the alteration of any matter of government in Canada; or
(d) to point out, for the purpose of removal, matters that produce or tend to produce feelings of hostility and ill-will between different classes of persons in Canada.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 61
Marginal note:Punishment of seditious offences
61 Every one who
(a) speaks seditious words,
(b) publishes a seditious libel, or
(c) is a party to a seditious conspiracy,
is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 62
Marginal note:Offences in relation to military forces
62 (1) Every person is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years or is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who intentionally
(a) interferes with, impairs or influences the loyalty or discipline of a member of a force,
(b) publishes, edits, issues, circulates or distributes a writing that advises, counsels or urges insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny or refusal of duty by a member of a force, or
(c) advises, counsels, urges or in any manner causes insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny or refusal of duty by a member of a force.
Definition of member of a force
(2) In this section, member of a force means a member of
(a) the Canadian Forces; or
(b) the naval, army or air forces of a state other than Canada that are lawfully present in Canada.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 62
- 2019, c. 25, s. 9
Unlawful Assemblies and Riots
Marginal note:Unlawful assembly
63 (1) An unlawful assembly is an assembly of three or more persons who, with intent to carry out any common purpose, assemble in such a manner or so conduct themselves when they are assembled as to cause persons in the neighbourhood of the assembly to fear, on reasonable grounds, that they
(a) will disturb the peace tumultuously; or
(b) will by that assembly needlessly and without reasonable cause provoke other persons to disturb the peace tumultuously.
Marginal note:Lawful assembly becoming unlawful
(2) Persons who are lawfully assembled may become an unlawful assembly if they conduct themselves with a common purpose in a manner that would have made the assembly unlawful if they had assembled in that manner for that purpose.
Marginal note:Exception
(3) Persons are not unlawfully assembled by reason only that they are assembled to protect the dwelling-house of any one of them against persons who are threatening to break and enter it for the purpose of committing an indictable offence therein.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 64
Marginal note:Riot
64 A riot is an unlawful assembly that has begun to disturb the peace tumultuously.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 65
Marginal note:Punishment of rioter
65 (1) Every person who takes part in a riot is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
Marginal note:Concealment of identity
(2) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) while wearing a mask or other disguise to conceal their identity without lawful excuse is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 10 years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 65
- 2013, c. 15, s. 2
- 2019, c. 25, s. 10
Marginal note:Punishment for unlawful assembly
66 (1) Every one who is a member of an unlawful assembly is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.
Marginal note:Concealment of identity
(2) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) while wearing a mask or other disguise to conceal their identity without lawful excuse is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 66
- 2013, c. 15, s. 3
Marginal note:Reading proclamation
67 A person who is
(a) a justice, mayor or sheriff, or the lawful deputy of a mayor or sheriff,
(b) a warden or deputy warden of a prison, or
(c) the institutional head of a penitentiary, as those expressions are defined in subsection 2(1) of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, or that person’s deputy,
who receives notice that, at any place within the jurisdiction of the person, twelve or more persons are unlawfully and riotously assembled together shall go to that place and, after approaching as near as is safe, if the person is satisfied that a riot is in progress, shall command silence and thereupon make or cause to be made in a loud voice a proclamation in the following words or to the like effect:
Her Majesty the Queen charges and commands all persons being assembled immediately to disperse and peaceably to depart to their habitations or to their lawful business on the pain of being guilty of an offence for which, on conviction, they may be sentenced to imprisonment for life. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 67
- 1994, c. 44, s. 5
Marginal note:Offences related to proclamation
68 Every one is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life who
(a) opposes, hinders or assaults, wilfully and with force, a person who begins to make or is about to begin to make or is making the proclamation referred to in section 67 so that it is not made;
(b) does not peaceably disperse and depart from a place where the proclamation referred to in section 67 is made within thirty minutes after it is made; or
(c) does not depart from a place within thirty minutes when he has reasonable grounds to believe that the proclamation referred to in section 67 would have been made in that place if some person had not opposed, hindered or assaulted, wilfully and with force, a person who would have made it.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 69
Marginal note:Neglect by peace officer
69 A peace officer who receives notice that there is a riot within their jurisdiction and, without reasonable excuse, fails to take all reasonable steps to suppress the riot is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 69
- 2019, c. 25, s. 11
Unlawful Drilling
Marginal note:Orders by Governor in Council
70 (1) The Governor in Council may, by proclamation, make orders
(a) to prohibit assemblies, without lawful authority, of persons for the purpose
(i) of training or drilling themselves,
(ii) of being trained or drilled to the use of arms, or
(iii) of practising military exercises; or
(b) to prohibit persons when assembled for any purpose from training or drilling themselves or from being trained or drilled.
Marginal note:General or special order
(2) An order that is made under subsection (1) may be general or may be made applicable to particular places, districts or assemblies to be specified in the order.
Marginal note:Punishment
(3) Every person who contravenes an order made under this section is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 70
- 1992, c. 1, s. 60(F)
- 2019, c. 25, s. 12
Duels
71 [Repealed, 2018, c. 29, s. 4]
Forcible Entry and Detainer
Marginal note:Forcible entry
72 (1) A person commits forcible entry when that person enters real property that is in the actual and peaceable possession of another in a manner that is likely to cause a breach of the peace or reasonable apprehension of a breach of the peace.
Marginal note:Matters not material
(1.1) For the purposes of subsection (1), it is immaterial whether or not a person is entitled to enter the real property or whether or not that person has any intention of taking possession of the real property.
Marginal note:Forcible detainer
(2) A person commits forcible detainer when, being in actual possession of real property without colour of right, he detains it in a manner that is likely to cause a breach of the peace or reasonable apprehension of a breach of the peace, against a person who is entitled by law to possession of it.
Marginal note:Questions of law
(3) The questions whether a person is in actual and peaceable possession or is in actual possession without colour of right are questions of law.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 72
- R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 10
- 1992, c. 1, s. 60(F)
Marginal note:Punishment
73 Every person who commits forcible entry or forcible detainer is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 73
- R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 11
- 1992, c. 1, s. 58
- 2019, c. 25, s. 13
Piracy
Marginal note:Piracy by law of nations
74 (1) Every one commits piracy who does any act that, by the law of nations, is piracy.
Marginal note:Punishment
(2) Every one who commits piracy while in or out of Canada is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life.
- R.S., c. C-34, s. 75
- 1974-75-76, c. 105, s. 3
Marginal note:Piratical acts
75 Every one who, while in or out of Canada,
(a) steals a Canadian ship,
(b) steals or without lawful authority throws overboard, damages or destroys anything that is part of the cargo, supplies or fittings in a Canadian ship,
(c) does or attempts to do a mutinous act on a Canadian ship, or
(d) counsels a person to do anything mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c),
is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.
- R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 75
- R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 7
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