Justice systems in the North should invest more energy in developing restitution processes that work, according to a leading Canadian victims’ advocate.

Irvin Waller, a professor at the University of Ottawa and the president of the International Organization for Victim Assistance, was a speaker at Justice for All: A Comparison of the Crime Victims’ Rights in the U.S. and Canada, put on by the American Bar Association’s Criminal Justice section this morning.

“We know from the social science evidence that well-organized restorative justice, which includes restitution payments, not only increases victim satisfaction compared to the normal process, but secondly actually reduces recidivism,” Waller said. “There is a real opening here. It’s win-win all around for justice at times of austerity.”

Susan Chapman of Toronto’s Green & Chercover, said judges in Canada are reticent about granting restitution orders, in part because of the historical division between criminal and civil justice.

“There’s also the practical realty. If someone is getting four years in prison, they’re going to be hard-pressed to pay restitution,” Chapman said.

Waller cited changes to the French justice system, which give victims standing in criminal cases to seek restitution from the accused.

In Ontario, the victim surcharge applied to most criminal and provincial offences raises about $44 million a year in Ontario, but most of it comes from traffic violations, and tends to be spent on support services for victims, rather than
individual restitution.

Russell Butler, who runs the Maryland Crime Victims Resource Centre, says he has faced similar problems south of the border, where legislation enshrining restitution payments has been circumvented by plea bargains or ignored altogether in sentencing. He said at least partial restitution should be sought by siphoning money from offenders’ earnings when they’re released on parole.

“I’m all for all offenders paying for victim services, but if you have an individual that’s harmed, I think they need to be the first priority in terms of payments from offenders. Otherwise, the government is then revictimizing them by taking the money for itself rather than helping the person along,” Butler said.

Canadian Attorney General and Minister of Justice Rob Nicholson, member of Parliament for Niagara Falls, announced today the members of the selection panel to fill the pending vacancies in the Supreme Court of Canada. Justices Ian Binnie and Louise Charron announced earlier this year they plan to retire from the court.

“The [SCC] is the pinnacle of our justice system, and our government is committed to continuing the tradition of legal excellence and undisputable merit that Canadians deserve and expect from our country’s highest court,” Nicholson said.

The mandate of the selection panel is to review and assess a list of qualified candidates created by Nicholson, in consultation with prominent Canadian legal figures and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Following an extensive consultation process, the selection panel will provide Harper and Nicholson with a list of six candidates.  

Harper and Nicholson will then select two nominees from that list; each candidate will appear at a public hearing of an ad hoc parliamentary committee.

The following individuals will comprise the selection panel:
• Conservative MP Bob Dechert
• Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner
• Conservative MP Brent Rathgeber
• New Democratic Party MP Joe Comartin
• Liberal Party MP Irwin Cotler

As Justices Binnie and Charron are both from Ontario, the incoming justices to the court will be from Ontario as well. By convention, the court has three judges from Ontario, one from British Columbia, one from the Prairies, and one from the Maritimes. Furthermore, three judges must be from Quebec, as dictated by the Supreme Court Act.

Canada

Son of former N.L. premier to be sentenced in drunk-driving death, The Globe and Mail

Lawyer accuses Ontario government of delaying class actions, The Globe and Mail

Charges dropped in Mexico hotel blast that killed five Canadians, Toronto Star

United States

Drug company, hospital named in lawsuit over suspected murder case, Reuters

New York appeals court upholds manslaughter conviction, Reuters

International

Court orders former Ukraine PM to detention, Reuters

Tommy Sheridan appeal against perjury conviction thrown out, The Guardian