Mr. Maloney, a charging section is a section of the code that identifies an offence, such as failure to provide the necessaries of life. When I did criminal defence work, the first thing I would do would be to obtain a copy of the information that laid out the charge. I would open the Criminal Code on my desk and compare the charge laid to the charging section in the code to make sure it was a valid charge—often it was not.
With respect to criminal endangerment, I would suggest essential elements along the lines of an individual or organization has entered into a contract to provide care and/or supervision of a person; that the individual or organization has failed to provide adequate care and/or supervision of the person; and the failure to provide adequate care and/or supervision has endangered the health or safety of the person. Those are the essential elements I would be looking at.
By the way, elder abuse is a very broad topic. I have much more to say, as does my agency, on other aspects of elder abuse. Today we've come to focus specifically on criminal responses to abuse and neglect in long-term care homes, retirement homes and other congregate living situations across the country.