Mr. Chair, I would first like to thank the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security for allowing us to participate in the consultation on this bill and to contribute to its work. I would particularly like to thank David Sweet, MP, for his commitment to this bill and his interest in the rights of victims of crime.
The Association québécoise Plaidoyer-Victimes has been in operation for 30 years. The mission of the association is to defend the rights and interests of victims of crime. The association brings together over 200 organizations that provide psychosocial support to victims and guidance through the justice system.
To begin with, we support many of the proposals for Bill C-479. Our presentations seek to express some of our questions and to propose some amendments that would likely improve the rights of victims under the Corrections and Conditional Release Act.
If I may, I will present our proposals in sections. First, I will talk about the amendments related to the attendance of victims at hearings and their participation. My first comment deals with the presumptive right to participate in hearings. The Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights made that recommendation a number of years ago. The Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime has made the same recommendation in recent years. We therefore support this proposal.
We have only one comment to make. In French, the current legislation talks about permitting victims to attend whereas the proposals on the table refer to authorizing them to attend. But “permettre” and “autoriser” have the same meaning. That would be something to check. It is a suggestion, not a substantive issue. It is a question of semantics.
Of course, we support the proposal on understanding why victims of crime need to attend hearings. However, we have a few concerns about how it will be applied. Perhaps we will be able to talk about them during questions.
My third point has to do with the options for victims who are unable to attend the hearings. If their attendance is not permitted, our suggestion is to allow them to follow the hearings by teleconference or by one-way video feed. We feel that this option should be available. Generally, victims are allowed at hearings. However, there may be exceptional cases where the safety of the facility or of the people might be at risk. We propose that the following words be added at the end of the clause: “except in cases where the safety of a facility, of an offender or of any other person may be at risk”.
We have a proposal that is in line with the one made by Ms. Lee and by the National Office for Victims. When victims are permitted to attend hearings and when they request to follow the hearings by teleconference or one-way video feed, we propose that the request be accepted; so the legislation should be amended. That would be a very good solution. I think that addresses a request made a very long time ago by victims’ rights groups.
The second section has to do with amendments to the victim impact statement at parole hearings. Section 101 of the current act indicates that the board must take into consideration the information received from victims. The victims' statement has been explicitly added and we think that reinforces the importance of the statement. We support that proposal.
The proposals currently on the table clarify how statements must be presented. Right now, the policy manual defines how statements are presented. It says what is acceptable. Audio and video recordings are generally acceptable right now, but we see in the board’s performance report that some statements are presented by videoconference or even on DVD.
We support this proposal, but we would like a clarification. In fact, this clause reads as follows:
If a victim or a person referred to in subsection 142(3) is not attending a hearing, their statement may be presented at the hearing in the form of a written statement, which may be accompanied by an audio or video recording, or in any other form provided for by regulation.
According to current practice, when there is a video or a recording, the statement must be reproduced. Would it be acceptable to have a written statement in addition to a video where a parent could show family scenes or pictures of their child? I think it is important to clarify that point because victims have expectations in that regard.
Like many other groups, our association proposes that the victims be authorized to read their statement by videoconference. We support that proposal.
We would like to submit other proposals regarding the victim impact statements. We would like to see the right to read a statement explicitly stated in the act. Section 722 of the Criminal Code deals with victim impact statements before the time of sentencing. We would like to see this right stipulated in the Corrections and Conditional Release Act.
We would also like another addition to this act. In paragraph 12 of section 9.7 and section 9.8 of the Policy Manual of the Parole Board of Canada, in the event of a waiver or postponement, victims may present their statements to the board, if the offender does not attend the hearing and the board proceeds with a review. We recommend that this practice or policy be included in the act.
I have one last recommendation for an addition. In the policy of the board, paragraph 6 of section 10.3 allows a victim's support person to present the victim's statement at the hearing. In our view, that is a great practice. It humanizes the process and facilitates the testimony of victims. Once again, that should be more than a policy; it should be a right for victims.
I will now talk about the amendments to the discretionary disclosure of information on the offender's temporary absence, the related conditions and destination. We support those proposals. There are also proposals on the disclosure of the correctional plan. We have some concerns about that. I just want to attest to that here.
Victims have been asking for a long time to have access to a lot more information, specifically on the risks associated with the detained person and the rehabilitation programs that the person is taking in the institution. The correctional plan may contain medical, psychological and psychiatric information, which is protected under the Privacy Act.
I would also like to remind you that the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, chaired by Mr. DeVillers in 2000, had drawn attention at that time to the importance of continuing to apply the test weighing the rights of both parties. For the sake of clarity, let me quote Mr. DeVillers:
...because some of this information may be detailed and complex, it should be made available to victims or their families in a form adequate to assist them, while being minimally invasive of the offender's privacy rights.
These are complex and delicate issues. We therefore recommend that the committee call on the expertise of the board or of the Correctional Service for a balanced perspective and that privacy and safety issues be reviewed. That is our proposal.
The last item dealing with the transcription of discretionary information has to do with the transcription of parole hearings. The Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights reviewed this issue in 2000. At the time, the committee concluded that parole hearings would not be transcribed and that it would be preferable or desirable that victims listen to the audio recordings of parole hearings. The ombudsman also made that suggestion. We have too in recent years. It comes back to the table often. That is why we are reiterating this proposal to amend the act so that victims can subsequently listen to the audio recordings of parole hearings, without keeping copies.
The last point has to do with amendments to the timeframe in life sentences. In 2010, the ombudsman made some proposals in that sense. The proposal on the table seeks to limit the number of automatic reviews for offenders who committed violent crimes, by extending the time between those reviews. I think Ms. Lee did a good job of explaining the resulting hardship for the families of victims, especially in the case of life or very long sentences. Perhaps I can explain this further.
I will just say that we know that victims have to be very brave to keep going to parole hearings. Of course, it places a heavy burden on victims.
We believe that what Bill C-479 proposes would make it possible to address the needs of those victims. However, such measures should not be applied arbitrarily and without being able to take into account the changes or progress that justify offenders' right to a new review.