The Liberals鈥� new bail-reform legislation includes new measures that would make it more difficult for some repeat violent offenders to get released on bail.
Justice Minister David Lametti introduced the bill Tuesday morning amid an ongoing plea from premiers, police associations and victims鈥� rights groups to strengthen the law.
He said the bill responds 鈥渄irectly鈥� to their concerns.
The legislation introduces reverse-onus bail conditions for people charged with serious violent offences involving a weapon, in cases where the person was convicted of a similar violent offence within the past five years.
It will also add some firearms offences to existing reverse-onus provisions, and expand the provision of that measure in cases where the alleged crimes involve intimate partner violence.
While the burden of proof usually rests on prosecutors to convince judges why offenders should stay behind bars, this means that in some cases, the offender will now be the one who has to prove in court why they should be released on bail.
鈥淵ou are innocent until proven guilty, and this is a critically important part of our legal system,鈥� Lametti said during a news conference on Tuesday.
鈥淏ut what we鈥檙e doing for certain violent offences is changing the default position and making sure that it is only in cases where there isn鈥檛 a threat to security.鈥�
Lametti said he hopes the law will pass with unanimous consent from other political parties.
鈥淭his bill responds directly to concerns raised by the premiers, as well as police chiefs and victims鈥� advocates,鈥� he said.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said the announcement is about 鈥渒eeping communities safe鈥� and 鈥渮eroes in on offenders who use guns and other weapons.鈥�
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said during his own press conference that he would go a step further if he was prime minister and waive such offenders鈥� rights to a bail hearing in the first place.
Poilievre said he would bring in laws that would require repeat violent offenders who are newly arrested for violent crimes to remain behind bars throughout their trial 鈥� 鈥渏ail, not bail.鈥�
He went on to say that the proposed laws would not raise the bar to access bail and instead they create a series of lower bars and will continue to allow repeat violent offenders to be released on bail.
鈥淎 common sense Conservative government will reverse Trudeau鈥檚 catch and release,鈥� he said.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said bail reforms cannot be the only thing considered to keep communities safe, and called for better supervision of people who are released on bail.
鈥淲e also know that there are serious concerns around mental health and addictions that are also creating serious problems around safety, and that has to be addressed as well,鈥� he said.
The proposed changes to the Criminal Code come amid pressure from the provinces and territories to reduce the number of repeat violent offenders who are granted bail. Premiers had unanimously asked the government to expand the reverse-onus provisions.
In a statement, Ontario鈥檚 Solicitor General Michael Kerzner and Attorney General Doug Downey said too many innocent people have lost their lives due to dangerous criminals not being behind bars.
鈥淚f passed, the federal government鈥檚 proposed legislation will bring meaningful and much-needed changes to Canada鈥檚 bail system,鈥� the statement said.
B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma said in a statement the changes were welcomed.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been clear all along that federal action is needed to fix the core of this national issue. Given the challenges we鈥檝e seen, I am glad the federal government has taken B.C.鈥檚 concerns seriously,鈥� her statement said.
鈥淲hile we鈥檒l be looking closely at the details of the federal legislation, the amendments broadly cover the types of violence we are seeing in our communities.鈥�
High-profile cases have recently brought attention to the issue, including the stabbing deaths of a woman and her daughter in Edmonton earlier this month.
The accused killer, whom police did not name but who has been identified in media reports, had reportedly been released on bail for a different crime less than three weeks earlier. The charge in that separate case was reportedly stayed a few days before the stabbings, and the man died in hospital last week.
The Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees that anyone who is charged with a crime will not be denied reasonable bail without just cause.
Lametti promised after a meeting with provincial and territorial justice ministers in March that he would bring in targeted reforms, but they would respect that right.
鈥擠avid Fraser, The Canadian Press
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