"When ‘Locking Them up’ Really is the Only Answer"

October 12, 2003

Last week, nine unelected Supreme Court judges took away our ability as a society to fulfill a duty to protect our citizens from the most dangerous and reprehensible offenders.  According to Canada’s top court, these criminals haven’t been given a fair shake at receiving lighter sentences.  The unanimous decision obviously didn’t take into account the harsh sentence of pain, misery and despair to be inflicted upon the next victims of these dangerous offenders. 

There are 334 “dangerous offenders” in Canada, convicts with a history of serious violent or sexual assault who are almost certain to re-offend.  They often show no remorse for the anguish suffered by their victims, make no efforts at rehabilitation (even refusing such initiatives altogether), or can’t be helped no matter how much counseling they receive or how much time passes. 

When we can’t do anything to stop sick and violent individuals from wanting to commit unspeakable and horrific crimes, we must do everything in our power to ensure that they can’t follow through on those urges.  So it was welcome news back in 1997 when Parliament passed legislation to crack down on dangerous offenders by imposing tougher sentences and even keeping them in prison indefinitely to protect their inevitable next victim. 

Unfortunately, most Liberal legislation includes some kind of loophole.  Last week, the Supreme Court blew the hole in dangerous offender legislation wide open by allowing five dangerous offenders to seek more lenient sentences as “long-term” offenders.  Dangerous offenders can be jailed for an indeterminate period of time with no parole hearings for seven years.  Long-term offenders on the other hand, receive set sentences and are then released into our communities and kept under “so-called” supervision for up to 10 years. 

One lawyer, who has defended clients against dangerous offender status, admitted there is “certainly” a possibility that more dangerous offenders will be released because of the ruling, but claimed “people don’t have to be worried” because there is a “very small number” of dangerous offenders. 

Small?  What they may lack in numbers, dangerous offenders make up for with the devastating impact of their vile crimes.  Just one of the five offenders involved in the court challenge is one too many.  These five are repeat offenders whose crimes span several years, even decades.  Their dozens of victims are children, including a 14-year-old girl who was raped with a butcher’s knife at her throat, a woman raped at a party and a woman raped while babysitting a group of children. 

Among these men, psychiatrists found a lack of remorse, sexual deviance, and the likelihood that they’ll commit future sexual violence if released into the community.  Now, they’re celebrating the court ruling that may very well lead to that scenario and Canadian taxpayers will pay for the lawyers and legal fees that are the keys to open their cell doors.

The federal government has an obligation to immediately rewrite its dangerous offender legislation to correct this grievous injustice.  Instead, victims are likely to be victimized once again by Liberal policy that appears obsessed with protecting the rights of criminals at the expense of their victims.