Yes, and I think committee members might have received a letter from Victims Services Durham Region. I've also heard from many families who have been victimized by some of the most horrific crimes out there. Maybe what I could do, Mr. Motz, is just read a little bit from that letter into the record. It says:
I'm writing on behalf of Victims Services of Durham Region to voice support for Bill C-320, an Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act....
Our agency has worked extensively with survivors and witnesses of violent crime, and their families, including those impacted by homicide. We have seen firsthand the indescribable effects of trauma and the triggering and re-traumatization to those impacted as they navigate years of involvement with the criminal justice system. At every intersection with the system they are reminded of the violence experienced and the irreparable harm done, no matter how much time has passed.
I could read through the whole thing, but it's basically about when victims should know. It says:
All changes to a sentence related to a loved one's death or their own victimization can re-traumatize. Conditional releases, pardons and transfers that impact offenders, also impact their victims.
I could read from the stakeholders. There's a letter I have from Daniel Silcox. I don't know if you remember this case, Mr. Motz, but his father, James Silcox, was the first victim of killer nurse Elizabeth Wettlaufer. She injected him with a lethal dose of insulin on August 12, 2007.
The news of that murder sent his family into extreme trauma and a downward spiral, and the offender was sentenced to eight life sentences, four seven-year sentences and two four-year sentences and was eventually sent to Grand Valley Institution in Kitchener-Waterloo. He is a registered victim relative to the crime. In October 2018, it came to his attention that the offender had been moved, but his calls to Victim Services of Kingston were met with indifference, and he was informed that, due to confidentiality reasons, her new location couldn't be disclosed.
Again, I could read through the whole thing, but he basically said that he strongly believes they have the right to know exactly where their father's killer is located and her movements and that they certainly should not only have the knowledge but also input into the parole proceedings when they take place. He complained about an extreme offender bias, and that's what I heard over and over again from victims' families.