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DEVOLIN SUPPORTS TOUGH NEW
LAWS THAT TARGET HIGH RISK REPEAT
OFFENDERS
October 17, 2006
OTTAWA-
Local MP Barry Devolin was pleased to hear Canada’s New Government
will introduce legislation to provide tougher sentences and more
effective management of individuals convicted of sexual or violent
offences in Canada.
When
approved by Parliament, the new law will:
- Make
it easier for Crown Prosecutors to obtain a Dangerous Offender
designation against individuals convicted for a third violent or
sexual offence;
- Create
stricter Peace Bond provisions for high risk offenders by
extending the maximum duration of Peace Bonds (which can
restrict contact with other persons, firearm possession etc.)
from 12 to 24 months; and
- Put
tighter restrictions on the behaviour of high risk offenders
once they are finally released.
Canada’s
New Government will make investments in the National Flagging
System, which tracks potentially dangerous offenders through
inter-agency collaboration and pre-sentence reports.
Strengthening
the National Flagging System will strengthen the ability of law
enforcement agencies to track high risk individuals.
And
it will ensure that they receive appropriate sentences should they
re-offend.
These
changes will help to keep dangerous serial-offenders in jail and
keep high risk offenders on a tighter leash when finally released.
Today’s
announcement is the latest move by Canada’s New Government to
tackle crime. New laws have been introduced to:
- Ban
house arrest for violent criminals;
- Bring
in mandatory minimum sentences for gun crimes;
- Crack
down on street racing; and
- Raise
the age of protection from 14 to 16.
Under
previous Liberal governments, drug, gun, and gang crime all
increased:
- Violent
crime is 35% higher than it was 20 years ago (Statistics Canada,
2004);
- The
overall drug-related crime rate has been on an upward trend
since 1993, with the cannabis offence rate rising 80% from
1992-2002 (Statistics Canada, 2004); and
- In
2005, the homicide rate rose 4%, to its highest level in nearly
a decade (Statistics Canada, 2006)
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30 –
For
more information contact:
Barry
Devolin, MP
(705)
324-2400 or (866) 688-9881
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