Crackdown on house arrests could alter justice in the North

SARA MINOGUE

Inuit offenders in Nunavut could be hit especially hard by a federal proposal to ban conditional sentences for serious offences, Crown attorneys and defence lawyers say.

The proposed bill, introduced in the House of Commons earlier this month, would rule out conditional sentences for crimes that carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years or more.

That includes sexual assault — a charge that was laid in Nunavut 141 times in 2004, and which occasionally results in house arrest for an offender.

Last year, 200 Nunavut offenders earned conditional sentences, while 275 got jail terms.

“I would say that we have probably more conditional sentence orders than most jurisdictions in Canada,” said Bonnie Tulloch, the regional director for Justice Canada, which prosecutes all crimes in the territory.

The Crown prosecutor acknowledged concerns for public safety, but also listed several instances where conditional sentences make sense.

“The reality is, for some people it is more difficult to serve your sentence in your own community, in your home, under house arrest, than it is to be flown to Iqaluit and then to be flown back and be recognized in your community,” Tulloch said.

That’s especially true for hunters who are used to going out on the land.

Conditional sentences are also beneficial because “the community gets to see the punishment, as opposed to the person just being flown out and then flown back in,” Tulloch said, noting that many communities celebrate when someone returns from a jail sentence.

Offenders may also get conditional sentences so they can get local treatment for addictions or other problems, or continue to work to provide for families.

Conservative Justice Minister Vic Toews announced the bill as a way to ensure “safe streets and communities.”

For Peter Harte, a defence lawyer with the Kitikmeot Law Centre in Cambridge Bay, the debate over whether conditional sentences pose a threat to the community boils down to whether jail time reforms offenders. At the moment, he has little confidence that offenders exit jail behaving any different than when they arrive.

“If jail cannot change somebody’s conduct, then when he comes back, he’s going to be a danger to the community,” Harte said.

Harte also suggests the changes could make more work for the courts, with fewer results.

Victims may be less willing to testify in cases where the offender could face a lengthy jail term out of town, Harte said, resulting in fewer convictions. Harte notes that it is already difficult to get witnesses to testify in many cases.

As for the deterrent effect of lengthy jail terms, Harte points out that these are moot if the offenders are unable to consider the consequences of their actions before it’s too late.

That’s often the case where offenders are drunk or high at the time of the offense, or simply lack the ability to foresee consequences, as is the case with people suffering from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, who are over-represented in the justice system.

Joyce Aylward, executive director of the Qulliit Nunavut Status of Women Council, said she understands some of these concerns, but that she still supports the bill as a measure to protect women from their attackers.

“I think everyone agrees that providing services in the community is, in the long run, the best for everyone, but until we have those services available and functioning, our main concern is the victims’ safety.”

Releasing offenders into the community, she said, sends a strong message that the courts don’t take violence against women very seriously. And when women who are experiencing violence see men returning to the community, they are less motivated to press charges in the first place.

Fewer conditional sentences will have a direct impact on Nunavut’s crowded jails.

Earlier this month, 73 prisoners were packed into the Baffin Correctional Centre in Iqaluit, which was designed for 40, but now holds 66. The extra inmates sleep on spare mattresses that are kept underneath the bunks in each cell block for that purpose.

The extra prisoners were in addition to about 20 to 25 Nunavut inmates that regularly serve sentences in the North Slave Correctional Centre in Yellowknife where there are more beds.

The Conservative government hopes to pass the proposed law as soon as possible, but first must win support from opposition members.