Criminal Defence Law Blog
“Sentencing must begin somewhere, and both starting‑point and range methodologies assist sentencing judges by providing a place to start in the form of either a single number or a range,” said four of the six justices who endorsed starting points. But they also acknowledged there is no such thing as a uniform sentence for a particular crime. “Neither tool relieves the sentencing judge from conducting an individualized analysis taking into account all relevant factors and sentencing principles,”
“Crown counsel represent the public’s interest and not that of a victim or complainant. It cannot be over-emphasized that the purpose of a criminal prosecution is not to obtain a conviction. The repudiation of a plea agreement is a rare and exceptional event.”
“True, some of these growing disparities are largely rooted in the previous Harper government’s failed “tough on crime” policies. But that doesn’t let the Trudeau Liberals off the hook for failing to halt the spreading stain of shame by reversing these policies. It is well known that mandatory minimum sentences disproportionately impact racialized groups. The federal government has promised for years to do away with these harmful, one-size-fits-all sentences.”
/https://www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/opinion/contributors/2021/11/01/justice-reform-can-no-longer-take-a-back-seat-for-trudeau-liberals/minister_of_justice_david_lametti.jpg)
