Mr. Speaker, after losing a loved one from a horrific act by a sadistic murderer, the families of victims are forced to relive the tragedy 25 years later.
Canadian society's most vile and deranged murderers are eligible for a parole hearing every two years after their 25-year sentences have been served. Most of those convicts are never released on parole. These parole hearings are unnecessary, but the victims' families are forced to revisit the trauma and confront the murderers who have brutalized their loved ones over and over again. We cannot let this go on.
Next week, this House will be debating my private member's bill, Bill C-478, the respecting families of murdered and brutalized persons act.
Bill C-478 would empower the courts to set parole ineligibility periods up to 40 years for those convicted of abducting, sexually assaulting, and murdering our innocent. The bill has received strong support from those families who have had to endure this pain.
I call upon all members of this House to support Bill C-478 and provide the justice these families rightly deserve.