Bill C-333

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First Reading

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	1st Session, 37th Parliament, 49-50 Elizabeth II, 2001
	House of commons of Canada
	BILL C-333
	An Act to establish and maintain a national registry of sex offenders to protect the children and communities of Canada
Preamble	Whereas, the people of Canada believe that there is a need to ensure the safety and security of all persons in Canada and that police forces require access to information about the whereabouts of sex offenders in order to assist them in the important work of maintaining community safety;
	Whereas the people of Canada believe that a national registry of sex offenders will provide the information and investigative tools that their police forces require in order to prevent and solve crimes of a sexual nature;
	Now, Therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and the House of Commons of Canada, enacts as fol lows:

Short title	1. This Act may be cited as the Sex Offender Registry Act.
Interpreta- tion	2. (1) The definitions in this section apply in this Act.
``justice'' « juge »	``justice'' has the same meaning as in the Criminal Code.
``Minister'' « ministre »	``Minister'' means the Minister of the Solicitor General of Canada.
``offender'' « délinquant »	``offender'' means a person
	(a) who has been convicted of a sex offence; or
	(b) who has been found not criminally responsible of a sex offence on account of mental disorder.
``police force'' « corps de police »	``police force'' means a federal, provincial or municipal police force.
``sex offence'' « infraction sexuelle »	``sex offence'' means
	(a) an offence under section 151 (sexual interference), section 152 (invitation to sexual touching), section 153 (sexual exploitation), section 155 (incest), section 160 (bestiality), section 163.1 (child pornography), section 170 (parent or guardian procuring sexual activity), subsection 173(2) (exposure), section 271 (sexual assault), section 272 (sexual assault with a weapon, threats to a third party or causing bodily harm) or section 273 (aggravated sexual assault) of the Criminal Code;
	(b) an offence under a predecessor or successor to a provision set out in paragraph (a); or
	(c) an offence under a provision of the Criminal Code that is prescribed.
``sex offender registry'' « registre des délinquants sexuels »	``sex offender registry'' means the registry established under section 5.
First Nations police forces	(2) Where an offender resides in an area where the police services are provided by a First Nations police service, references in this Act to a police force shall be read as references to a First Nations police service, with such modifications as the circumstances require, and references to a police officer in this Act shall be read as references to a First Nations Constable.
Application of Act	3. (1) This Act applies to every offender anywhere in Canada who
	(a) is serving a sentence for a sex offence on the day this Act comes into forces;
	(b) is convicted of a sex offence on or after the day this Act comes into force; or
	(c) is found not criminally responsible of a sex offence on account of mental disorder on or after the day this Act comes into force.
Act binding on the Crown	(2) This Act is binding on Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province.
Interpreta- tion	4. Where, in any provision of this Act, a reference to a provision of the Criminal Code is followed by words in parenthesis that are or purport to be descriptive of the subject-matter of the provision referred to, the words in parenthesis form no part of the provision in which they occur but shall be deemed to have been inserted for convenience of reference only.
Sex offender registry	5. The Minister shall establish and maintain a registry containing the names, dates of birth and addresses of offenders, the sex offences for which they are serving or have served a sentence or of which they have been convicted or found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder and such additional information as may be prescribed.
Offender required to report in person	6. (1) Every offender who is resident in Canada shall present himself or herself at a designated bureau, police station or detachment of the police force that provides police services where he or she resides or at another place in the area where the police force provides police services designated by that police force
	(a) within 15 days after he or she is released from custody after serving the custodial portion of a sentence in respect of a sex offence;
	(b) within 15 days after he or she is convicted of a sex offence, if the offender is not given a custodial sentence;
	(c) within 15 days after he or she receives an absolute or conditional discharge in respect of a sex offence, if he or she was found not criminally responsible of the offence on account of mental disorder;
	(d) within 15 days after he or she changes his or her address;
	(e) within 15 days after he or she becomes resident in Canada;
	(f) within 15 days before he or she ceases to be resident in Canada;
	(g) on a day that is not later than one year after and not earlier than 11 months after he or she last presented himself or herself to a police force under paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) or under subsection 10(2); and
	(h) on a day that is not later than one year after and not earlier than 11 months after he or she last presented himself or herself to a police force under paragraph (g).
Offender to provide information	(2) Upon presenting himself or herself under subsection (1), the offender shall pro vide the police force with satisfactory proof of his or her identity, his or her name, date of birth and address, and such other information as may be prescribed.
Designated places, times, days	(3) Every police force shall designate one or more bureaus, police stations, detachments or other places in the area where the police force provides police services at which offenders may present themselves for the purposes of subsection (1), subsection 10(2) and subsection 11(1), and may also designate the days and times when offenders may present themselves for those purposes.
Information submitted to Minister	7. The police force shall cause the information provided by the offender under section 6 to be recorded and, if the person authorized by the police force to record the information is satisfied that the information provided by the offender is correct, shall submit the information to the Minister in a manner approved by the Minister.
Information recorded in registry	8. (1) Upon receipt by the Minister of information submitted by a police force in accordance with section 7, the information shall be recorded in the sex offender registry.
Other information recorded in registry	(2) The Minister may at any time obtain information about an offender from any other record of information available to the Minister, or from any other source that is not a record, and may record such information in the sex offender registry.
Right of offender to review own record	9. (1) Upon receiving a written request from an offender, a police force shall cause to be disclosed to the offender the information about the offender that is contained in the sex offender registry and cause him or her to be provided with a copy of that information.
Identification required	(2) The police force shall require satisfacto ry proof of the identity of the offender before a disclosure is made under subsection (1).
Offender may correct information	(3) If the offender believes any information about him or her in the sex offender registry is incorrect, he or she shall provide the police force with the correct information and, if the person authorized by the police force to record this information is satisfied that the information provided by the offender is correct, the police force shall submit the information to the Minister in a manner approved by the Minister and the sex offender registry shall be corrected accordingly.
Reporting period	10. (1) Subject to subsections (2), (3) and (4), an offender shall comply with section 6
	(a) for 10 years after he or she first reports under section 6, if the maximum sentence for the sex offence of which he or she was convicted or found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder is not more than 10 years;
	(b) for the rest of his or her life, if the maximum sentence for the sex offence of which he or she was convicted or found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder is more than 10 years;
	(c) for the rest of his or her life, if, on or after the day this Act comes into force, he or she is serving a sentence for or is convicted or found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder of more than one sex offence.
Reporting requirement in abeyance while in custody	(2) An offender who is resident in Canada is not required to comply with section 6 while he or she is serving the custodial portion of a sentence for any offence or is detained in custody in hospital as part of a disposition under Part XX.1 of the Criminal Code, but must present himself or herself at a designated bureau, police station or detachment of the police force that provides police services where he or she resides or at another place in the area where the police force provides police services designated by that police force and comply with subsection 6(2)
	(a) within 15 days after he or she is released from custody after serving the custodial portion of a sentence in respect of an offence other than a sex offence; or
	(c) within 15 days after he or she receives an absolute or conditional discharge, if he or she was found not criminally responsible of an offence other than a sex offence on account of mental disorder.
Reporting requirement in abeyance while residing outside Canada	(3) An offender who is not resident in Canada is not required to comply with section 6 but shall comply with section 6 or resume complying with section 6, as the case may be, as provided in paragraph 6(1)(e), upon becoming or again becoming resident in Canada.
Reporting requirement ceases to apply on pardon	(4) An offender is no longer required to comply with section 6 if he or she receives a pardon for every sex offence for which this Act would be made applicable to him or her under subsection 3(1) or (3) and if he or she provides proof of the pardon under section 11.
Proof of pardon	11. (1) An offender who receives a pardon for a sex offence may present himself or herself at a designated bureau, police station or detachment of the police force that provides police services where he or she resides or at another place in the area where the police force provides police services designated by that police force and provide the police force with proof of the pardon.
Information submitted to Minister	(2) If the person authorized by the police force to receive the proof of the pardon is satisfied that the pardon was granted to the offender, the police force shall advise the Minister of the pardon.
Offender deleted from registry upon pardon for all sex offences	(3) If the offender has received a pardon for every sex offence for which this Act is made applicable to him or her, the Minister shall delete every reference to and every record of the offender from the sex offender registry.
Disclosure prohibited	12. (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), no person shall disclose to another person information obtained from the sex offender registry in the course of his or her duties under this Act or received in the course of his or her duties under this Act except as provided by this Act.
Exception	(2) A police force, an employee of a police force and an employee of or person authorized by the Minister for the purposes of this section shall have access to the sex offender registry at any time and may collect, retain and use information obtained from the sex offender registry for any purpose under this Act or for crime prevention or law enforcement pur poses.
Exception	(3) A police force, an employee of a police force and an employee of or person authorized by the Minister for the purposes of this section may disclose information contained in the sex offender registry to another police force in or outside Canada for the purposes of this section or for crime prevention or law enforcement purposes and the other police force may collect, retain and use the information for crime prevention or law enforcement purposes.
Deemed compliance	(4) Any disclosure of personal information made under subsection (2) or (3) shall be deemed to be in compliance the Privacy Act and the Access to Information Act.
Offences by offenders	13. (1) Every offender who, without reason able excuse, fails to comply with this Act or provides false information under this Act is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable
	(a) for a first offence, to a fine of not more than $25,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or to both; and
	(b) for a subsequent offence, to a fine of not more than $25,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years less a day, or to both.
Offences by other persons	(2) Every person who wilfully contravenes section 12 is guilty of an offence.
Warrant for arrest	(3) If a justice is satisfied by information on oath that an offender is required to and has failed to comply with section 6 or 10, the justice may issue a warrant for the arrest of the offender for the purpose of complying with section 6 or 10.
Release	(4) After being brought, pursuant to the warrant, to a place described in subsection 6(1) for the purpose of complying with section 6 or 10, the offender shall be released forthwith unless he or she is arrested for an offence under subsection (1) and detained for the purposes of judicial interim release under the Criminal Code.
Telewarrant	(5) Where a police officer believes that it would be impracticable to appear personally before a justice to make application for a warrant under subsection (3), he or she may, in accordance with the Criminal Code, seek the warrant by telephone or other means of telecommunication, and the justice may, in accordance with the Criminal Code, issue the warrant by the same means.
Protection from personal liability	14. No action or other proceeding for damages shall be instituted against the Crown, the Minister, a municipality, any police force or any person employed by or providing services to a police force or the Minister for any act or omission in the execution or intended execution of a duty or authority under this Act or for any alleged neglect or default in the execution in good faith of that duty or authority.
Protection of privacy, freedom of information, legislation	15. Personal information may be collected, retained, disclosed and used in accordance with this Act despite the Privacy Act and the Access to Information Act.
Regulations	16. The Governor in Council may make regulations
	(a) prescribing provisions of the Criminal Code for the purpose of the definition ``sex offence'';
	(b) prescribing additional information to be maintained in the sex offender registry and to be provided by offenders under section 6 or added to the sex offender registry under subsection 8(2);
	(c) prescribing the circumstances under which an offender shall be deemed to reside in Canada or in an area in Canada;
	(d) prescribing limits to the number of requests for information that may be made by an offender under subsection 9(1);
	(e) governing applications for and the issue of warrants by telephone or other means of telecommunication for the purpose of subsection 13(3), prescribing rules for the execution of such warrants and prescribing evidentiary rules with respect to such warrants;
	(f) permitting the Minister and any other Minister or any agency, board or commis sion of the Government of Canada to share information in their possession or control for the purposes of adding such information to the sex offender registry;
	(g) permitting the Minister to enter into an agreement with the government of a prov ince or any agency, board or commission of such government to permit them to share information in their possession or control for the purposes of adding such information to the sex offender registry or to a similar registry maintained by the other govern ment;
	(h) requiring that the sex offender registry be included in and form part of a specified existing record or registry of information; and
	(i) respecting any matter that the Governor in Council deems necessary for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.
Coming into force	17. This Act comes into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.

Bill C-333

BILL C-333