OTTAWA – A crackdown on bail is coming: today, the Liberal government led by Mark Carney tabled a bill that will make it more difficult to obtain bail for a variety of crimes, including vehicle theft, extortion, and home invasion. It would introduce for these offenses what is already in place for more serious crimes like murder: the reverse onus. That is, the burden of proof would shift from the prosecutor to the accused, meaning the accused would have to prove that bail is justified. 

But the bill doesn’t just provide for this. Let’s look at the other planned changes.

First, judges will be required to impose a gun ban on individuals accused of extortion or organized crime-related offenses if they are granted bail. Second, the bill would allow for consecutive sentences for repeat offenders and violent offenders, so that multiple sentences cannot be served concurrently. And this will also apply to crimes such as vehicle theft, trespassing, extortion, and arson.

Furthermore, the bill establishes new aggravating circumstances for convictions for repeat violent crimes, crimes against emergency responders, theft, and property damage. It also introduces new restrictions on the granting of conditional sentences or house arrest for sexual assaults and sex crimes involving minors.

The bill also includes amendments to the Youth Criminal Justice Act that would allow police to release identifying information about a person under the age of 18 in the event of an imminent threat to public safety. Currently, police can only release this type of information with a court order. The proposed change aims to expedite the process of sharing information when public safety is at risk. The bill would also clarify the definition of “violent crime” in the Youth Criminal Justice Act, including any crime in which a minor causes bodily harm.

All the details about the bill are here.

Opposition parties and police forces, as well as provincial premiers, have long called on the federal government to impose stricter bail laws in response to the increase in vehicle thefts, extortion, retail robberies, and the many other violent crimes that have made Canada, in recent years, a much less safe place.

Photo by Felix MacLeod from Unsplash