(OTTAWA) The federal government is expected to introduce legislation on Tuesday to reform Canada’s bail system.
Provinces and territories have publicly raised concerns about defendants committing crimes while on bail awaiting trial in another case.
Federal Justice Minister David Lametti has since indicated that he will make “targeted reforms” to the Criminal Code to remedy this situation. The government says the reforms will target violent repeat offenders and offenses involving firearms and other dangerous weapons.
The premiers of the provinces and territories are in fact calling for a change to the bail system that would reverse the burden of proof for those accused of certain serious crimes. It would then be up to the accused to prove in court that he should not remain behind bars pending further proceedings.
After meetings in March with Minister Lametti and his colleague from Public Safety, Marco Mendicino, the premiers were optimistic that the federal government would respond favorably to their request. Bronwyn Eyre, Saskatchewan’s Minister of Justice, had noticed at the time a constructive attitude and an openness from Ottawa.
Mr. Lametti did not specify then whether other “reverse onus” provisions would be introduced in a bill. But after calling the meetings with his provincial and territorial counterparts good and productive, he said there was “broad consensus on the way forward.”
The Minister of Justice told reporters at the time that the amendments would aim to address the challenges posed by violent repeat offenders and those charged with crimes involving firearms or other weapons.
Pressed by the Tories during Question Period in the House of Commons on Monday, Mr Lametti said he had been working on the issue with stakeholders since October and that reforms would be “coming soon”.
“We’ve heard the call for repeat violent offenders, we’ve heard the call for weapons offences,” he said. We promised to act. It’s a complicated issue, but we do it with the provinces and territories. »
High profile tragedies
Calls for reform have grown in Canada after several high-profile crimes, including the killing of an Ontario Provincial Police officer last February. According to the police, this crime was committed by a man who had obtained his bail.
However, Minister Lametti has repeatedly explained that bail is a constitutional right and that according to many experts, there are already too many people behind bars awaiting trial. He warned that he wanted to avoid overreacting to high-profile tragedies.
Section 11 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees anyone charged with a crime “not to be denied reasonable bail without cause”.
Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson, who is this year’s chair of the Council of the Federation, said a key focus of last month’s meetings with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police focused on reforms to protect communities by keeping repeat violent offenders in custody.
Conservatives in Ottawa also lobbied the Liberal government for a tougher bail system in Canada, and a Commons committee looked into the matter.
Danny Smith, Winnipeg police chief and president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, said he was encouraged to see that Ottawa could act before the summer. “It would demonstrate an understanding of the urgency of legislative change,” he said in a written statement.
“It would also be an acknowledgment that the changes we have proposed do not require a complete overhaul of Canada’s bail system, but rather changes that specifically address violent repeat offenders, who pose the greatest threat to the safety of citizens and police. »