Many Ontario Court of Justice Judges are opposed to the Victim Surcharge Harper recently made mandatory because it is a fine levied upon every criminal conviction without regard to the person’s ability to pay. It is a disproportionate punishment upon the poor. A Superior Court Judge has now ruled that it’s okay because it’s not a punishment, just a consequence of conviction. That’s not the end of it though. We have other lines of argument and the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada to go before this thing is finally decided.