Justice committee  Thank you. I'm speaking today on behalf of the Canadian Criminal Justice Association. I am chair of the policy review committee. I am also a professor in the criminology program here at Wilfrid Laurier University. I've spent the past nine years working and researching within cir

Justice committee  I concur with those opinions, although I would add that for offenders who have families, doubling that mandatory minimum could have serious impacts in terms of loss of work and their inability to gain employment upon release, which could have very serious consequences for the fam

Justice committee  The CCJA is one of the longest-standing non-governmental organizations of professionals and individuals who are interested in criminal justice issues. The CCJA was founded in 1919. We have actually testified before both Houses at committees on numerous occasions in the past. I've

Justice committee  We have a range. Some of them have been correctional workers or police officers, social workers, psychologists, and criminologists, or do research or teach in university and college systems. We have a very wide range of people and expertise.

Justice committee  Absolutely, and not just sexual offenders, but offenders more broadly. Canadian programs in cognitive skills development and in various other programs are very widely recognized around the world by other countries that are emulating and trying to copy that model. Unfortunately, t

Justice committee  I am not a lawyer. I have a Ph.D. in sociology and I'm a professor of criminology.

Justice committee  That's correct. I've been working and doing research for 10 years.

Justice committee  That's correct.

Justice committee  I believe so. I saw it when they announced it. I'm not privy to the numbers.

Justice committee  Corrections Canada provides some funding, and there was some funding from the National Crime Prevention Centre.

Justice committee  Correct.

Justice committee  I would say that's correct.

Justice committee  There are several different reasons why a court might decide to use prison as a sentence. One is for its denunciatory effect. It has long been thought that if the public--

Justice committee  It might be in the ceiling.

Justice committee  I'm calling for some technical support. In the meantime, will it help if I raise my voice?