I'd like to now talk to the brief, the very provocative and very hard-hitting brief that the Acumen Law Corporation provided.
You start by talking about bail hearings, summary conviction proceedings, and limits on cross-examination, which you say are overly broad and severely limit the rights of an accused, and you say that the “proposed amendments will disproportionately affect marginalized groups and people of colour, while also discouraging reporting of domestic violence cases”. You say that these amendments “are unlikely to withstand scrutiny from the Courts and are unlikely to be saved by s. 1”. It's a pretty hard-hitting indictment of this legislation.
I'd like to specifically, then, drill down on the “reverse onus in bail hearings” provision. You say that in the American experience, the barriers to reporting, which involve distrust of law enforcement and poverty, lead you to conclude that these provisions will be regressive and will actually make women less safe. I'd like you to elaborate on that.