The ReeveLaw Blog

Defining what crosses the line between spanking and abuse is not always easy. PM Trudeau is committed to implementing all of the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which includes repealing section 34 of the Criminal Code which permits limited physical discipline of children. This will not however be limited to affecting just First Nations communities. Spanking is accepted parenting in some cultural and immigrant groups (as well as some Canadians), many of whom are already disproportionately targeted in criminal proceedings. If this is to be done it deserves, yet again, broad consultation and public input.

Repealing a provision of the Criminal Code that shields parents from facing assault charges for hitting their children would affect more than just First Nations communities, legal experts say.

Source: Repealing spanking law affects more than just First Nations: experts | CTV News

Let’s see, if you are found guilty of a criminal offence but the sentence is a discharge the RCMP will purge it from their records after 1 or 3 years however if you have a trial and are found not guilty, or the Crown withdraws the charge because they can’t prove it or the charge is stayed without a finding the RCMP will keep that on record unless you specifically request it to be purged, which they can refuse. Does that sound right to you? AND we don’t have pardons anymore. Harper got rid of those.

More than three million Canadians have had some type of criminal conviction that resulted in them having a criminal record. However, most of thes

Source: Helpful Information about Pardons and Criminal Records | AspirantSG – Food, Travel, Lifestyle & Social Media

Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides that “everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.” The right to a fair trial is a principle of fundamental justice and requires the disclosure of the “fruits of the police investigation” as necessary to enable an accused person to make full answer and defend himself or herself against the charges that have been laid. The Crown must disclose all relevant information to the accused, whether inculpatory or exculpatory, subject to the right to refuse to disclose information that is privileged or plainly irrelevant. Prior to the Charter the Crown had absolutely no obligation to disclose anything and in practice, a trial was like an ambush.

Department of Justice Canada’s Internet site

Source: Background – Disclosure Reform – Consultation Paper

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was enacted in 1982 as part of the repatriation of our Constitution. Prior to that citizens had no constitutional rights of privacy or freedoms and the final appeal in criminal cases was to the Privy Council in England. In 1982 we became masters of our own laws. At that time there existed Writs of Assistance which was a special type of search warrant issued to a police officer for his or her lifetime. No judicial decision was necessary. Under this Writ the officer could order citizens to do whatever the officer wanted to assist him in the execution of his or her duties and use whatever physical force considered necessary. The officer had unlimited power unrestricted as to date, time or place to enter any premises the officer wished to. Damaged or destroyed property did hot have to be repaired or destroyed. The Charter changed this.

https://bccla.org/our_work/writs-of-assistance/

 

It’s a theory that’s been around for a while but this article shows the convincing evidence. “Gasoline lead (Pb(CH2CH3)4) is responsible for a good share (as much as 90%) of the rise and fall of violent crime over the past half century. Childhood blood lead levels are consistently associated with higher adult arrest rates for violent crimes.”

New research finds Pb is the hidden villain behind violent crime, lower IQs, and even the ADHD epidemic. And fixing the problem is a lot cheaper than doing nothing.

Source: America’s Real Criminal Element: Lead | Mother Jones

This is not a change of direction or policy but rather confirmation that our courts are tough on crime when it’s appropriate.

Need to deter impaired driving justified stiff penalty after fatal 2011 crash in Quebec, justices say

Source: Supreme Court backs judge’s right to impose stiff sentence for drunk driving – The Globe and Mail

CAN WE TRUST CSI TYPE EVIDENCE? – “I have concluded that the hair-strand drug and alcohol testing used by the Motherisk Drug Testing Laboratory between 2005 and 2015 was inadequate and unreliable for use in child protection and criminal proceedings and that the Laboratory did not meet internationally recognized forensic standards. The use of the Laboratory’s hair-testing evidence in child protection and criminal proceedings has serious implications for the fairness of those proceedings and warrants an additional review.” The Honourable Susan Lang, Independent Reviewer

Source: Home

Take note that if you are not a Canadian citizen and are sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 6 months or more, our recent “Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act” has removed your right to appeal a deportation order.

Last November, we published a post about the intersection of criminal and immigration law, and specifically about the Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act – legislation that made it easier to de…

Source: AvoidAClaim | Immigration consequences of criminal convictions: An update

TOUGH CASES MAKE BAD LAW – Tragic circumstances do not justify a hasty or overbroad legislative response. From the lawyer who argued the case: ” The government of the day — which was heading for an election — was not willing to throw the police and the prosecution service under the bus for no charges being laid, so instead created the appearance of doing something by creating and passing a very poorly executed law. In the process, they trampled on the Charter rights of all Nova Scotians and created a distraction from the important discussion about sexual assault and consent. Among other things, the Act allows an alleged victim of cyberbullying to appear before a justice of the peace to obtain a cybersafety protection order. These orders can go so far as to result in the confiscation of electronic devices and being barred from using the internet. An alleged cyberbully never has any notice of this hearing and has no right to give his side before the order is made.”

Source: Canadian Privacy Law Blog: Nova Scotia’s cyberbullying law declared to be unconstitutional and a “colossal failure”

A HISTORY OF WEED IN CANADA – It’s decades past the time to stop criminalizing a non-violent activity. The Canadian Le Dain commission of 1973 concluded that “the criminalization of cannabis had no scientific basis.” “continued criminalization of cannabis remains unjustified based on scientific data on the danger it poses.” In 2015 the CBC reported that “86 percent of Canadians and 75 percent of Conservative voters supported legalizing or decriminalizing marijuana.” Stop the injustice.

Canada has had a complicated relationship with marijuana over the years.

Source: From ‘Raving Maniacs’ to the ‘Prince of Pot’: A History of Weed in Canada | VICE News