Bill C-254

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First Reading

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	2nd Session, 35th Parliament, 45 Elizabeth II, 1996-97
	The House of Commons of Canada
	BILL C-254
	An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and the Criminal Code

Preamble	Whereas the Parliament of Canada is gravely concerned about the incidence of offenders repeating violent offences, particularly sexual offences, and the effects on Canadian society;
	Whereas the Parliament of Canada recognizes that a small number of high-risk offenders may be identified after sentencing as posing a clear, continuing and substantial threat of harm to the physical or mental well-being of other persons;
	Whereas the Parliament of Canada recognizes that measures of varying degrees of restriction are required to prevent the repetition of violent offences and the associated harm and believes that highly restrictive measures may legitimately be used in exceptional and carefully defined circumstances;
	Whereas the Parliament of Canada acknowledges that in cases of sexual offences involving children evidence of serious harm may not be available for a variety of reasons, including the victims' inability, because of their youth, to describe the injury caused by the offence and the fact that indications of serious harm may only appear years after the offence is committed;
	And Whereas the Parliament of Canada recognizes that the required measures must be implemented in a manner consistent with the rights and freedoms guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms;
	Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1992, c. 20; 1993, c 34	CORRECTIONS AND CONDITIONAL RELEASE ACT
	1. The definition ``inmate'' in subsection 2(1) of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act is amended by striking out the word ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (a)(i) and by adding the following after subparagraph (a)(ii):
	(iii) a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code, or
	(iv) a suspension of post-sentence supervision ordered pursuant to section 135.1, or
	2. Section 5 of the Act is amended by striking out the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph (d) and by adding the following after paragraph (d):
	(d.1) post-sentence supervision ordered pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code; and
	3. Subparagraph 26(1)(b)(iv) of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(iv) the date of any hearing for the purposes of a review under section 130 or 132.1 ,
	4. (1) The definition ``offender'' in subsection 99(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
``offender'' « délinquant »	``offender'' means a person who is
	(a) under a sentence of imprisonment imposed before or after the coming into force of this section
	(i) pursuant to an Act of Parliament or, to the extent that this Part applies, pursuant to a provincial Act, or
	(ii) on conviction for criminal or civil contempt of court where the sentence does not include a requirement that the offender return to that court, or
	(b) subject to an order for post-sentence detention or supervision made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code,
	but does not include a young person within the meaning of the Young Offenders Act who has been committed to custody under that Act or a person whose only sentence of imprisonment is a sentence being served intermittently pursuant to section 737 of the Criminal Code;
	(2) Subsection 99(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:
``serious personal injury offence'' « sévices graves à la personne »	``serious personal injury offence'' has the same meaning as in section 752 of the Criminal Code;
	5. (1) Subsection 107(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (c):
	(c.1) to cancel the suspension of post-sentence supervision ordered pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code or to confirm the suspension for a period of not more than three months;
	(2) Subsection 107(1) of the Act is amended by striking out the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph (d) and by adding the following after paragraph (d):
	(d.1) to review and to refer to the appropriate Attorney General the case of an offender referred to the Board pursuant to section 132.1;
	(3) Subsection 107(1) of the Act is amended by adding the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph (e) and by adding the following after paragraph (e):
	(f) to authorize or to cancel a decision to authorize the unescorted temporary absence of an offender who is subject to a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code.
	6. Subsection 112(1) of the Act is amended by striking out the word ``or'' at the end of paragraph (b), by adding the word ``or'' at the end of paragraph (c) and by adding the following after paragraph (c):

	(d) offenders who are subject to post-sentence detention orders made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code.
	7. Subsection 115(1) of the Act is amended by striking out the word ``and'' at the end of paragraph (b) and by adding the following after paragraph (b):
	(b.1) in the case of a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code, one year; and
	8. (1) The portion of subsection 116(1) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
Conditions for authorization	116. (1) The Board may authorize the unescorted temporary absence of an offender referred to in paragraph 107(1)(e) or (f) where, in the opinion of the Board,
	(2) Subsection 116(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Conditions for authorization	(2) The Commissioner or the institutional head may authorize the unescorted temporary absence of an offender, other than an offender referred to in paragraph 107(1)(e) or (f) , where, in the opinion of the Commissioner or the institutional head, as the case may be, the criteria set out in paragraphs (1)(a) to (d) are met.
	9. Subsection 117(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Delegation to provincial hospital	(2) Where, pursuant to an agreement under paragraph 16(1)(a), an offender referred to in paragraph 107(1)(e) or (f) or subsection 116(2) has been admitted to a hospital operated by a provincial government in which the liberty of persons is normally subject to restrictions, the Board, the Commissioner or the institutional head, as the case may be, may confer on the person in charge of the hospital, for such period and subject to such conditions as they specify, any of their respective powers under section 116 in relation to that offender.
	10. Subsection 119(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (b):
	(b.1) one year, where the offender is subject to a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code;
	11. Subsection 121(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Exceptions	(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to an offender who is
	(a) serving a sentence of life imprisonment imposed as a minimum punishment;
	(b) serving a sentence of life imprisonment commuted from a sentence of death;
	(c) serving in a penitentiary a sentence of detention for an indeterminate period; or
	(d) being detained in a penitentiary under a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code.
	12. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 127:
Exception	127.1 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, an offender who is being detained under a post-sentence detention order made pursuant to section 753.1 of the Criminal Code is not entitled to statutory release.
	13. (1) Paragraph 129(2)(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(a) in the case of an offender serving a term of imprisonment that includes a sentence for an offence set out in Schedule I, that
	(i) the commission of the offence caused the death of or serious harm to another person and there are reasonable grounds to believe that the offender is likely to commit an offence causing death or serious harm to another person before the expiration of the offender's sentence according to law, or
	(ii) the offence was a sexual offence involving a child and there are reasonable grounds to believe that the offender is likely to commit a sexual offence involving a child before the expiration of the offender's sentence according to law; or
	(2) Paragraph 129(2)(b) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
	b) dans le cas où l'infraction commise relève de l'annexe II, il y a des motifs raisonnables de croire que le délinquant commettra, avant l'expiration légale de sa peine, une infraction grave en matière de drogue.
	(3) The portion of subsection 129(3) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
Referral of cases to Chairperson of Board	(3) Where the Commissioner believes on reasonable grounds that an offender who is serving a sentence of imprisonment of two years or more is likely, before the expiration of the sentence according to law, to commit an offence causing death or serious harm to another person, a sexual offence involving a child or a serious drug offence, the Commissioner shall refer the case to the Board together with all the information in the possession of the Service that, in the Commissioner's opinion, is relevant to the case, as soon as is practicable after forming that belief, but the referral may not be made later than six months before the offender's statutory release date unless
	(4) Subsection 129(9) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Definitions	(9) In this section and sections 130 and 132,
``serious drug offence'' « infraction grave en matière de drogue »	``serious drug offence'' means an offence set out in Schedule II;
``sexual offence involving a child'' « infraction d'ordre sexuel ... »	``sexual offence involving a child'' means
	(a) an offence under any of the following provisions of the Criminal Code:
	(i) section 151 (sexual interference),
	(ii) section 152 (invitation to sexual touching),
	(iii) section 153 (sexual exploitation),
	(iv) subsection 160(3) (bestiality in presence of child or inciting child to commit bestiality),
	(v) section 170 (parent or guardian procuring sexual activity by child),
	(vi) section 171 (householder permitting sexual activity by child),
	(vii) section 172 (corrupting children),
	(viii) subsection 212(2) (living off the avails of prostitution by a child), and
	(ix) subsection 212(4) (obtaining sexual services of a child),
	(b) an offence under any of the following provisions of the Criminal Code involving a person under the age of eighteen years;
	(i) section 155 (incest),
	(ii) section 159 (anal intercourse),
	(iii) subsections 160(1) and (2) (bestiality and compelling bestiality),
	(iv) section 271 (sexual assault),
	(v) section 272 (sexual assault with a weapon, threats to a third party or causing bodily harm), and
	(vi) section 273 (aggravated sexual assault), or
	(c) an offence involving a person under the age of eighteen years under any of the following provisions of the Criminal Code, chapter C-34 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1970, as they read immediately before January 4, 1983:
	(i) section 144 (rape),
	(ii) section 145 (attempt to commit rape),
	(iii) section 149 (indecent assault on female), and
	(iv) section 156 (indecent assault on male).
Determina- tion of likelihood of offence	(10) In determining whether an offender is likely to commit an offence causing death or serious harm to another person, a sexual offence involving a child or a serious drug offence, it is not necessary to determine whether the offender is likely to commit any particular offence.
	14. (1) Paragraph 130(3)(c) of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(c) in the case of an offender serving a term of imprisonment that includes a sentence for an offence set out in Schedule I, that the offender is likely, if released, to commit an offence causing the death of or serious harm to another person or a sexual offence involving a child before the expiration of the offender's sentence according to law,
	(2) Paragraph 130(3)(e) of the English version of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(e) in the case of an offender whose case was referred to the Board pursuant to subsection 129(3), that the offender is likely, if released, to commit an offence causing the death of or serious harm to another person, a sexual offence involving a child or a serious drug offence before the expiration of the offender's sentence according to law.

Bill C-254

BILL C-254

CORRECTIONS AND CONDITIONAL RELEASE ACT