Sue O'Sullivan, Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime.
Good morning, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today on this important bill.
Bill C-10 is a substantial piece of legislation with many aspects and issues for discussion.
Given our limited time today, and the role of my office in providing a voice to victims of crime, I would like to focus on providing you with points for consideration in relation to part 3 of Bill C-10, specifically with respect to the changes to the Corrections and Conditional Release Act that apply to victims of crime. I will focus solely on those aspects of this bill as they have direct effect on the treatment of victims of crime within the Canadian criminal justice system.
I would like to begin by commending the government for moving forward with the changes proposed on behalf of victims of crime to enhance the CCRA. We have spoken to a number of victims and victim advocates who have fought for these changes for years and who are extremely pleased to see them come to fruition. The proposed amendments to the CCRA are a positive step forward and I'm heartened to see the momentum building for real change for victims of crime in Canada. That being said, there is still much more work to be done and further changes to be made in order to truly address a broader scope of victims' concerns. The office has been pushing for many of these and further changes on behalf of victims since it opened its doors in 2007. In fact, these proposed changes were the subject of the office's second special report, “Toward a Greater Respect for Victims in the Corrections and Conditional Release Act”, which I have provided to all members for reference. I strongly encourage all members to carefully review the report and would be happy to follow up if there are any questions.
From my perspective, there are three main amendments that relate directly to the treatment of victims of crime: providing victims with the right to present a statement at parole hearings; removing an offender's right to cancel a parole hearing within 14 days of the scheduled hearing; and increasing the scope of information provided to victims.
With respect to the right to present a statement at parole hearings, moving to enshrine this right is extremely important. In the current system, the imbalance between offenders' and victims' rights is stark and unjust. Providing victims with more actual legislated rights will help to address this. However, while this is a long-awaited and crucial change for victims, there is a very important element missing. Victims are still are not being granted the right to attend the hearing. If victims are denied attendance, the right to present a statement in person becomes moot. We believe that victims, barring any security threats or concerns, should have the right to attend a parole hearing and that this right must be enshrined in law, as opposed to simply in policy.
With respect to the second change, the emotional toll of preparing to attend a parole hearing for a victim can be huge, let alone the time required for travel, logistics, and more. The ability for an offender to cancel a hearing, even hours prior, permits a lack of consideration for the victim that is simply unacceptable. Providing a period of 14 days' prior notice allows victims some security in knowing that the offender cannot cancel at the last minute and helps to begin to incorporate some element of consideration for the victims' needs. This change was one that our office recommended in its report, and we fully support it.
Finally, with respect to the last point, it is time we acknowledged that victims are not bystanders in the criminal justice process. They deserve to be kept informed and to be able to plan for their own safety. Victims want more information about the offender who harmed them in order to understand what steps they've taken to rehabilitate themselves--or, conversely, what risk they might still pose. The types of information added through this bill are very much in line with the kind of information victims have told our office they want. However, the amendment only goes as far as to make this information available at the discretion of CSC or PBC. We feel that victims should have a right to this information, full stop. In a system where victims have no recourse if they are denied, this type of information should be given in all cases and should not be at the discretion of CSC or PBC. I would also add one more item to this list: that victims also be provided with an updated photo, upon request, of the offender at the time of his or her release.
While I am encouraged to see these changes being made, there is much more work to be done. Victims need more information, they need to be able to participate in a meaningful way in the criminal justice process, and they need to have tangible supports in place to assist them in the aftermath of a crime. There are further tangible, practical changes to the CCRA that would have a direct and meaningful impact on victims. I would encourage members to consider including these as amendments to Bill C-10 moving forward. These are listed in your information package with reference to the specific sections to be amended and include: ensuring that victims have the right to face their offender by providing them with the presumptive right to attend a parole hearing, unless there is justification to believe their presence will be disruptive or will threaten the security of the institution or individuals; providing victims with advance notification regarding all offender transfers between institutions, where possible, not just those transfers where an offender is moved from a maximum to a minimum; providing victims the right to receive up-to-date information about the progress and programming of the offender who harmed them and ensuring they receive it well in advance of having to prepare any victim statement for a parole hearing; providing victims with the choice of attending or observing parole hearing proceedings in person, by video conference, by teleconference, or by reviewing recordings of the proceedings at a later date.
Thank you.