According to the Canadian Criminal Code it is illegal to knowingly threaten to cause death or bodily harm to a person. Section 264.1(1) also makes it clear that it is a criminal offence to knowingly threaten to burn, destroy or damage real or personal property, or to threaten to kill, poison or injure a person’s animals or birds. The original intent of this law was meant to contend with the threatening behaviour of those engaged in organized crime, but has since evolved to encompass a broad array of settings, from domestic to public.
From time-to-time each of us has said something in anger or frustration. Maybe you have said something like, “I could just murder my mother-in-law” or “I want to kill that dog, it is barking so much”. Either of these statements could be construed as your having made a threat. The difference between saying something as a joke, or in frustration or anger, and an actual threat is hostile intent – were the words meant to intimidate or to be taken seriously.
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