Ontario is asking the federal government to make several changes to its criminal law related to bail, including eliminating bail for certain crimes and introducing a “three-strike rule” for repeat offenders.
Attorney General Michael Kerzner said at a press conference Monday that too many crimes are being committed by “individuals who have been charged with prior serious criminal conduct and are out on bail.” He also claimed the federal Liberal government was taking a “de-crime approach”, resulting in the introduction of a “catch-and-release bail system”.
In a public letter to the federal justice minister and public safety minister, Mr. Kerzner called on Ottawa to implement a series of bail reforms, including:
- Eliminate bail options for people charged with crimes such as murder, terrorism, human trafficking, intimate partner violence, drug trafficking, criminal possession or use of a restricted or prohibited firearm, and robbery.
- Introduce a three-strike rule that requires pre-detention for repeat offenders.
- Reinstate mandatory minimum sentences for serious crimes.
- Eliminate time-limited credits pending trial for “habitual violent offenders.”
Monday’s letter comes in the wake of several high-profile cases of crimes allegedly committed by offenders on bail, including the fatal shooting of Ontario Provincial Police Const. This is the latest salvo in a wave of calls for stricter bail laws to be enacted. . Grzegorz Pierčala, second half of 2022.
In response, the federal government passed Bill C-48 last year. The Act expands on the “reverse onus” clause, which means that instead of Crown prosecutors proving why the accused should be held in custody pending trial, the Crown Prosecution Service must show why the accused should be released. It means not to be.
Graham McGregor, deputy minister for motor vehicle theft and bail reform, who was appointed in June and spoke alongside Kerzner, said the legislation was an “attempt to rectify the problem” but added it did not go far enough.
“Ontario families need us to be more ambitious than Bill C-48,” he said.
Federal Minister of Justice and Attorney General Arif Virani said in an emailed statement that it was “beyond frustrating” that McGregor had “chose to play political games”, and the minister said he was “beyond annoyed” about bail reform. He added that he never responded to an invitation to discuss it directly. Virani’s office included a copy of the invitation dated October 9 in the email.
“These proposals are far removed from any evidence that they will reduce crime or meet Charter standards,” Virani continued. He singled out the proposed “three strikes” rule, saying such policies in the United States have caused incarceration rates to explode with little impact on crime.
Villani also said the bail system will only work if Ontario “steps up”.
“Today’s letter addresses my previous concerns about the adequacy of court resources, ensuring that magistrates have appropriate legal training to make bail decisions, and ensuring that magistrates have sufficient legal training to challenge bail hearings. It does not address the serious concerns raised about securing the employment of prosecutors, securing bail reviews when they are brought, and not only because we feel mistakes were made, but on behalf of those in custody. “We need to ensure we have enough prison space and resources,” he said.
In June, Ontario pledged $29 million to appoint at least 25 new judges to the Ontario Court of Justice and hire 190 additional court staff, including Crown prosecutors.
Ontario’s prisons are already at capacity
Ontario’s proposed changes also raise questions about how the province’s already overcrowded prison system will cope with an additional influx of inmates.
Earlier this year, the state announced that about 81% of inmates in state prisons were awaiting bail hearings or trials. That’s a slight increase from nearly 79 per cent in 2021 and 2022, according to the Canadian Civil Liberties Association report.
Meanwhile, data obtained by The Canadian Press through the Freedom of Information Act shows the province’s inmate population will soar in 2023, leaving the majority of correctional facilities well above capacity.
Unions representing prison officers have repeatedly raised concerns about overcrowding, saying inmates are triple-bedded in some facilities. The Criminal Lawyers Association also said it was taking longer for defendants to reach bail hearings, leading to an increase in the prison population.
State prisons hold people every day who have been charged with crimes but are not being released on bail, or who are serving sentences of two years or less. Inmates serving sentences of two years or more spend their days in federal prison.
Ontario is asking the federal government to change its criminal laws to keep repeat offenders and violent offenders off the streets. As CBC’s Clara Pacieca explains, the demands include changes such as reinstating mandatory minimum sentences for serious crimes and eliminating bail for certain offenders.
In March, Premier Doug Ford promised to build more prisons in Ontario, downplaying concerns about conditions at existing facilities.
“I’m going to build more prisons, but I’m not worried about criminals,” he said at the time. “We will build as many prisons as necessary to incarcerate these criminals for long periods of time.”
Shortly after those comments, the state announced plans to add up to 430 beds to prisons by 2026 and to put $112 million into various bail compliance programs.
NDP Leader Marit Stiles told reporters at Queen’s Park that she would consider the province’s proposed criminal code reforms, but the Ford government has made a number of mistakes over its own failures regarding the backlog of cases and the current state of the province. He also said he was trying to shift his focus. prison.
“The Attorney General and other MPs are only talking about bail reform when they are refusing to address the issues that are under their control here in Ontario, which is backlogs and delays in the courts. I think it’s a little infuriating to see the system,” Stiles said.
“Bail reform is definitely part of the puzzle, but the fact that guilty people are being released because our courts are understaffed and overwhelmed is something this Attorney General and this government must and must address now. “That’s what you can do,” she continued.
