Justice committee  That's a big question, but that's something LEAF has been engaged in a lot of research on this past year. What we're talking about is restorative justice and transformative justice models. These can take a variety of different shapes, and they can exist within the legal system or outside the legal system.

Justice committee  Good morning. My name is Roxana Parsa. I am a staff lawyer at the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund, also known as LEAF. I am grateful to appear today from what is now known as Toronto, which is on the traditional lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Wendat, the Anishinabe and the Haudenosaunee nations.

Status of Women committee  We don't provide direct support at our organization. Something LEAF is very passionate about pursuing is looking at alternative avenues to justice outside the criminal legal system. We recently released a report on restorative and transformative models of justice and how survivors who may not want to go through the criminal legal system can seek mechanisms of justice and safety through other models.

Status of Women committee  I agree with everything that's been said and I would reiterate that we think it is really time to move our perspective beyond just focusing on the criminal legal system. Prevention work is what is crucial.

Status of Women committee  I would agree with everything that has been said. With respect to the deterrent effect, there is not much evidence showing that electronic monitoring has a deterrent effect. Harshness of penalties does not lead to deterrence, and I also think there are technological faults—

Status of Women committee  I was just going to say that many of the technological barriers that arise can also lead to failures in deterring, because they know it won't work, really.

Status of Women committee  I would agree with that and say that I think we are all here with the same goal, which is ending gender-based violence. Speaking from LEAF, our work is developed through research and consultation with a range of individuals, some of whom are survivors and some of whom are experts.

Status of Women committee  I also have a nuanced answer to that.

Status of Women committee  Sure. Thank you for that question. I think it's very important to point out what you were just highlighting: Relying on something like electronic monitoring, which is embedded in the criminal legal system, pushes a lot of survivors away from accessing support. Indigenous and Black women, racialized communities and migrant women....

Status of Women committee  I'm sorry. I didn't fully understand the question you're asking.

Status of Women committee  I guess we can't say exactly which resources the government will choose to spend on. What we can say is that electronic monitoring devices are very expensive. We know this. This money does not need to be spent on them. It could be spent on—and we would encourage the government to think about spending it on—social support mechanisms.

Status of Women committee  Thank you for that question. I have not been looking too in depth at what has been happening in Quebec. I have read studies from other places in Europe where electronic monitoring has been used. One thing that's important to point out and that I've seen emerge is that it's often found to be successful when it's paired with other interventions and other programming.

Status of Women committee  I think that's a great question, and I think it's definitely something that needs to be considered with this bill. I agree that going to court is often retraumatizing for any victim. As well, it can be difficult to share your thoughts on security when the abuser is there. Oftentimes, the court becomes a place of abuse.

Status of Women committee  We support the idea that victims should be given the order of the bail and that victims should be involved in that process and heard, but we do not support the electronic monitoring provisions or the peace bond provision, as we also believe that it is repetitive of section 810 on peace bonds, and we question the usefulness of adding this new provision.

Status of Women committee  Thank you. It is exactly what you're saying. There are many technological faults that can occur when using these devices. In rural areas, for example, there might not be a constant signal between a device and the receiving unit. I've read about cases where there's a battery that is losing power and causes false alarms or doesn't work properly.