Public Safety committee  Yes, the basic decision would be made by the commissioner that this is necessary for the investigation or prosecution of this offence. Hearings would then take place about the extent of the disclosure to the various accused and about the potential publication of that in public. All that was considered.

Public Safety committee  My interpretation of the reason for that provision is to prevent anyone who can link the two identities together from saying.... Even if they don't make the link of the identities, they link them to the new location, and that simply means that the people who are potential threats to that person would now know where to look.

Public Safety committee  We've had to grapple with that issue with respect to the meaning and intent of the section. The conclusion we've come to is that it has to be specific enough information that it would be reasonable that someone could locate the person without many problems. So a province, by itself, probably is not sufficient to say that it would be a criminal act and that with disclosure someone would indirectly or directly be able to find that person within a specific province.

Public Safety committee  That's absolutely correct. Sections 9 and 10 deal with termination. Termination, in fact, in my interpretation of the act, is not regarded as as serious a matter as the termination of a protectee from the witness protection program. It is not regarded as as serious a matter as the disclosure of the identity or location of a protectee.

Public Safety committee  I read section 12 as saying these factors shall be considered, and if they aren't considered--

Public Safety committee  It says--and I will read it to you: “The following factors shall be considered in determining whether information about a person should be disclosed under section 11...”. Failure by the commissioner to do that would open the commissioner to judicial review.

Public Safety committee  If I'm asked, I'll review it, but it's not necessary that I would be asked to review it.

Public Safety committee  In my interpretation, yes, the commissioner has to follow the steps and has to be satisfied that the purpose, the reasons for that disclosure, fall within the intent of section 11 of the Witness Protection Program Act. In this case, the appropriate disclosures were made to the necessary police investigating authorities and court.

Public Safety committee  Yes. Thank you. I would direct your attention to section 11 of the Witness Protection Program Act. That is the one that makes it an offence to knowingly disclose the identity or information about the location of a protectee or former protectee. The exceptions in it are set out so that the RCMP commissioner herself could only disclose information that's not permitted, by virtue of that section, which deals with the administration of the Witness Protection Program Act—actually, steps that would be taken to provide protection to the protectee, which would have to be done to provide it....

Public Safety committee  If it's helpful, you may want to look at subsection 14(2) of the act, which requires that no one be admitted into the country in the witness protection program without the consent of both the Minister of Public Safety and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. The person would have to qualify for admission under those standards, which usually limits people who have criminal backgrounds from being accepted for immigration purposes.

Public Safety committee  In response to both of those questions, normally, as a matter of policy, the RCMP does not confirm or deny who it has from what countries in the witness protection program, but in this case I don't have any personal information to offer.

Public Safety committee  Let me add some help to make sure the testimony is accurate. The Witness Protection Program Act does provide for one immunity for protectees. That's in section 13, where a person whose identity has been changed as a consequence of the protection provided under the program shall not be liable or otherwise punished for making a claim that the new identity is and has been the person's only identity, which essentially gives them immunity from perjury.

Public Safety committee  I expect that would have to be the case.

Public Safety committee  They have 20 days to notify the coordinator that they wish to make a representation and contest the notice. Then they can ask for an extension for a reasonable time to make the representation they wish to make.

Public Safety committee  That goes for me as well.