Evidence of meeting #6 for Justice and Human Rights in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was police.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Ed Fast
Thank you.
We're left with just under five minutes, so what I'll do is give Mr. Woodworth two and a half minutes and give Mr. Dechert two and a half.
Mr. Woodworth.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Conservative Kitchener Centre, ON
Thank you very much.
I want to thank the witnesses today. There has been a great deal of very, very helpful evidence, in my opinion.
I'm going to start by asking Chief Hanson about his statement because I thought it was one that made a great deal of sense and really is the hallmark of what I've heard today: that is. that organized crime is motivated by profit, not by stupidity or substance abuse.
What I take from that and from some of your comments afterward, Chief Hanson, is that if this is the case, then there is a role for sentences that will deter people, sentences that will in fact outweigh the profit to be made in the business of organized crime.
So I'm looking at that as a statement to say that maybe there is a place for deterrence in those kinds of crimes. Is that a correct interpretation?
12:55 p.m.
Chief of Police, Calgary Police Service
You're absolutely right. If I could I'd make just one point on that. If for serious offences, there's serious time, there's a protection in society, absolutely, in regard to deterrence. If there's one thing that this committee could recommend, it would be a recommendation to allow treatment sentences to be part of the Criminal Code regimen. In other words, for so many of those people who are in jail, if we had the ability upon arrest to put them in a treatment facility for mandated treatment and detox them--they're going to jail anyhow--for 30 days or 45 days, and then introduce them to proper treatment, we will have an effect, not only on crime, but also on who is in the jails.
12:55 p.m.
Chief of Police, Calgary Police Service
Yes, mandatory treatment for a drug addiction while they're in jail, because many of them are masking a mental illness. Once they're detoxed, you can find out that it's not an addiction but a mental illness that's facilitating whatever crime they're involved in.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Conservative Kitchener Centre, ON
That's all right.
If I may, I'll move on to Chief Boyd.
I've listened with interest to your remarks regarding the Bail Reform Act and the system of release for offenders. I wonder if you have any comment with respect to the young offender release provisions. You didn't specifically address that.
I am led to believe that young people sometimes are enlisted to assist in certain aspects of organized crime, at least in relation to the drug trade. So I wonder if it is any better or any worse when it comes to the release provisions around young offenders.
12:55 p.m.
Chief of Police, Edmonton Police Service
Well, certainly, some of the release provisions don't end up being able to sufficiently control a young person's conduct. I think that's what this Bail Reform Act and the release is aimed to do: not to punish, but to exercise some restriction or control over the behaviour of an individual. Whether it's an organized crime individual, a drug-addicted offender, or a young person, we need appropriate mechanisms to control the criminal conduct of these offenders to protect society.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank all of you gentlemen for all of the important information you've been sharing with us this morning.
I think it was Inspector Imgrund who mentioned marijuana grow ops. Specifically, I'd be interested in hearing his views, and perhaps also yours, Chief Boyd.
In my area of Ontario, Peel Regional Police have told me that there is a significant problem with marijuana grow ops. I've seen these operations in my city of Mississauga. They're well-financed and sophisticated operations. Sometimes these people buy a house that's worth $400,000 or $500,000 or more, load it up with equipment, and bring crime right into the neighbourhoods where people live.
I know that it's expensive and risky for the police to shut down these operations. Hazardous materials are involved and sometimes these operations are booby-trapped. I wonder if you could tell us a little bit about what's involved in shutting these places down and the cost to you and your officers, and what you think we should do to prevent these things from being set up in the first place.
1 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Ed Fast
We only have time for one response, so we'll go to Inspector Imgrund.
1 p.m.
Officer in charge, National Security and Criminal Intelligence, K Division, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
I did mention it briefly. I hate to say it, but I don't know if I have a great deal of expertise on the cost of shutting them down. I don't know if somebody else wants to take it. I can say something, but it's probably not the most authoritative response. If nobody else wants to, I will.
1 p.m.
Chief of Police, Edmonton Police Service
It certainly takes a lot of resources, and it's beyond the resources of the police as well, I might add, because there are hazardous substances in there, so you need other professionals. You need electricians and you need haz-mat people to come in and work with you, and that's just on the marijuana grow operations. We have other types of operations where it's same type of thing. It's very labour intensive.
I think you're absolutely right: we have this problem in many areas of the country, starting with the west coast and going right through to the east coast.
1 p.m.
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
And they make other drugs in these labs as well, don't they?
Okay. Thank you very much.
1 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Ed Fast
Thanks to all of you. This is perhaps one of the most helpful panels we've had in our journey across Canada. I hope the report we issue will go a very significant way forward in addressing the problem of organized crime in Canada.
Chief Hanson.
1 p.m.
Chief of Police, Calgary Police Service
We thank you for making the time for this and for inviting us. It means a lot to us for you to take your time to listen to what we have to say. It really does mean a lot, so on behalf of all of us here, I ask you to please accept our sincere thanks for making time for us here today. It means the world to us.