Mr. Speaker, I will indicate at the outset that I am in support of Bill C-262 which was first introduced in October by the hon. member for Kootenay—Columbia.
It is not often that we in this House have an opportunity to debate a piece of legislation that, while brief in detail, could have a very important impact on protecting the public at large.
As mentioned by previous speakers, and in particular my colleague from Nova Scotia, we have an opportunity in the House to impact directly on our criminal justice system. The Minister of Justice has stood in this House many times and in response to questions from the opposition benches has said there are no simple answers. That may be partly true but at times there are simple answers. This bill in its present form is a very straightforward and simple answer to a problem that exists in our Criminal Code.
My colleague from Nova Scotia has already spoken about some of the nuances that exist when it comes to sentencing, the principles of sentencing and the difference between a provincial and federal sentence and the designation of two years plus or minus a day. I will not go into detail on that.
There is an opportunity here to allow judges to have greater discretion in the sentencing process, that is, judges who in the first instance place sentences on offenders and put in place conditions in the instance of a provincial sentence. Judges are in a unique position to assess the circumstances of the offence. They would have the benefit of the input of defence and crown counsel. They would have potentially heard a trial and made rulings of fact. Therefore the judge in the first instance has the unique opportunity to craft a sentence that is best aimed at meeting the principles of sentencing which are reformation and rehabilitation, not to mention the protection of the public and society's denunciation of certain criminal acts.
This bill allows judges to become more involved in the process for sentences that go beyond the two year mark. I would like to commend the hon. member as well. This is a unique and straightforward bill he is bringing before the House.
I want to make a few comments with respect to the Reform Party's position on this. In the past we have heard derogatory remarks in this House from members of the Reform Party about judges generally. I am not going to get into the details of that.
It is important to note that this bill gives judges more discretion. It is very important that we in this place do not stand up and be overly critical of a certain institution, such as judges, and then turn around and want to empower them with greater discretion in what I would interpret as a means to give judges greater respect and control within the justice system.
Bill C-262 clearly gives judges additional power. With that comes additional responsibility. Although judges have been given greater discretion by this legislation, I caution Reform members about some of their comments about judges generally. When members of Canada's Parliament refer to judges in this institution I do caution them.
As referred to earlier, the justice committee has a great deal on its plate. I would like to inform the hon. member that I took the opportunity today, because I knew this piece of legislation was coming forward, to ask the director of Correctional Service Canada what his reaction would be to this initiative. I was interested by his response.
The director felt that it was not necessary. He felt that there were sufficient safeguards in place and that Correctional Service Canada and the parole board had the ability and were in a better position to craft the conditions of release when a prisoner had served his or her time or, as we have come to know it, a portion of his or her time prior to being released. I was somewhat surprised that he responded so quickly with that. As I indicated earlier in my remarks, I think this opportunity to have judges craft a sentence in the first instance early in the process might have long term ramifications.
One thought which came to mind while I was listening to some of the remarks of the other speakers would be that the parole board or Correctional Service Canada would have the discretion to add or subtract certain conditions based on the progress of the offender or the rehabilitative steps the offender had made while incarcerated, depending on whether it was a long term or a short term sentence. The parliamentary secretary to the minister has referred to the fact that it is perhaps not necessary because for long term sentences the parole board or Correctional Service Canada are in a better position to assess that progress.
Again I hearken back to my earlier remarks. It is very important in all the steps an offender goes through from apprehension to eventual release into society that all the interested parties should have and through this legislation could have greater input into the process.
I want to refer quickly to a couple of cases. These are factual cases before the committee.
One involves an individual by the name of Raymond Russell who was a convicted killer. On May 29, 1996 he murdered Darlene Turnbull in her Vernon, British Columbia home. At the time Mr. Russell had been released on full parole and was boarding with Ms. Turnbull. Problems came to light as a result of a Corrections Canada inquiry after the fact. The Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime has done a great deal of research into this case.
The National Parole Board in conjunction with CSC did the report. It focused on the fact that there was a lack of exchange of information. It highlights the fact that apparently in many instances a breakdown in information exchange is occurring in the justice system. It poses very grave consequences for the public at large if all that information is not available.
In the context of this bill, we have an opportunity for judges early on to have input into long term sentences. They would then be subject to those conditions the judges might deem appropriate in the first instance and would be subject to review from the contemplated time of release to see if they were still appropriate. Although the Minister of Justice has said that there are no simple solutions, I would suggest that this is a very simple change that could take place. We should embrace it.
One thing Canadians have hoped for and have come to expect is that we should be looking for solutions that make the law more pliable and more applicable. If that involves updating or changing the law, we should encourage that.
There are times when the law could be made simpler. It could be made more user friendly. It could be more user friendly for police officers who have to be the first line of contact when the law is broken. It could be more user friendly for victims and people who are brought into the system through no will or no want of their own.
Another case involves Michael Hector who was a convicted armed robber and on parole when he was involved in the murder of three innocent people in the Thunder Bay area. He was on parole at the time he committed these heinous crimes. Prior to his release the National Parole Board had granted him day parole. It came to light that factually some of the conditions that had been placed upon him were not being followed.
It highlights again the need for appropriate conditions to be in place. They have been described in some cases as abstention from alcohol, non-association with prior comrades, or staying away from playgrounds in the case of a sexual offender. Those types of conditions could be diagnosed. Perhaps I am using that word inappropriately.
A judge in the first instance could make that determination and put those conditions in place. They could be reviewed prior to the offender's release, whether that is two, four, six or eight years down the road. They could be reviewed by the parole board and deemed to be appropriate or not appropriate. The important thing is the conditions are there and everything humanly possible is done to ensure that the proper conditions are in place.
I support this piece of legislation. I commend the hon. member for bringing this bill to the floor of the House. I am sure the policing community, the victims advocate community and the public at large would see this as a positive change to our Criminal Code. I am encouraged that all members have spoken favourably on it.
On behalf of the Progressive Conservative Party, we support this legislation.