The Harper government's decision to take court action aimed at upholding the country's current dangerous offender legislation is a good move for victims of crime and for the community at large.
“This government will not rest when it comes to strengthening our justice system and standing up for the rights of victims,” Justice Minister Rob Nicholson told the House of Commons.
“Our government will vigorously defend the constitutionality of all our legislation to the highest courts in this country, if necessary.”
Nicholson's comments come following an Ontario Superior Court ruling last week that struck down the section of the Criminal Code requiring violent offenders with three or more convictions to convince the courts that they shouldn't be declared dangerous offenders.
The presiding judge in the Ontario ruling said the law violates the Charter of Rights because the burden of proof is too onerous.
Once declared a dangerous offender, a criminal can be handed an indefinite prison sentence, which can, in some cases, mean life in prison.
Until four years ago, the Crown had to meet several requirements before someone could be deemed a dangerous offender.
Then, in 2008, the Harper Conservatives enacted legislation that changed that, shifting the burden of proof to the offender (called a reverse onus), who now had to convince the court that he or she shouldn't be labelled dangerous.
Now that law has been struck down and the Harper government has announced plans to appeal the ruling.
NDP justice critic Françoise Boivin says the Tories will be creating a “legislative versus the judiciary” situation by appealing the Ontario ruling.
“We're opening a big can of worms that might really be dangerous,” said Boivin.
Despite the NDP opposition concerns, the Conservatives are right in trying to uphold the law.
Requiring repeat violent offenders to prove that they are not dangerous and should not be locked up for life is a good way to protect the community from such offenders.
Such offenders show no respect for law and order in Canada, so isn't it only right that they should have to prove that they won't just continue with their law-breaking ways, putting even more innocent citizens at risk?
“We have acted to protect Canadian communities from repeat violent criminals,” said Minister Nicholson. “In fact, provincial attorneys general supported this legislation, law-abiding Canadians have supported it, even the chronically soft-on-crime opposition parties voted for it.”
Hopefully the Harper government court action aimed at maintaining the reverse onus requirement for dangerous offenders will be successful – at very least for the sake of crime victims and their families in West Central Alberta and elsewhere in Canada.
