PM announces upcoming legislation to keep Canada’s most heinous criminals behind bars for life

Scarborough, Ontario 4 March 2015

Introduction

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced the Government’s intent to introduce legislation to keep Canadian families and their communities safe by ensuring that the most heinous criminals will be sentenced to life behind bars without possibility of parole. The Prime Minister was joined by Peter MacKay, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and Roxanne James, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

Canadians expect their Government to protect them from the worst type of criminal, those who truly deserve to be called a menace to society. Individuals who commit the most heinous crimes, such as: those who plot kidnapping or sexual assault that results in murder; those with such contempt for law and order that they kill the police and correctional officers who are charged with protecting our streets; those who despise our values and way of life that carry out deadly acts of terrorism; and those who commit crimes of a particularly brutal nature.

That is why our Government will introduce legislation to amend the Criminal Code to ensure that Canada’s most heinous criminals – those whose actions mean we cannot risk permitting them on the streets – receive a life sentence with no chance for parole.

This legislation will follow through on the 2013 Speech from the Throne commitment to ensure that a life sentence means a sentence for life, building on the Government’s ongoing commitment to keep Canada’s streets and communities safe by holding violent offenders accountable and ensuring that the rights of victims are placed over the rights of criminals.

Quick Facts

This legislation will build on the Government’s tough-on-crime measures to keep our streets and communities safe by ensuring that criminals who are convicted of the most serious murders or those who are convicted of high treason will be imprisoned for the rest of their natural lives with no access to parole. This will include a mandatory sentence of life without parole for first degree murders involving:

• sexual assault;
• kidnapping or forcible confinement;
• terrorism;
• the killing of police officers or corrections officers; or,
• any first degree murders that are found to be of a particularly brutal nature.

The Prime Minister also recently announced the Government’s intention to introduce legislation that would end the practice of making early release available for repeat violent offenders.

Quote

“Our Government believes in standing up for victims of crime and their families, putting their rights and interests ahead of those of criminals, and that a prison sentence should mean what it says. To this end, we are working to ensure that the Canadian justice system no longer allows the worst criminals to pose a risk to you, your children, and our communities. I am proud to announce that next week our Government will introduce legislation to ensure that the most heinous criminals who commit the most horrific crimes face serious criminal penalties, and that a life sentence in Canada will mean exactly that: a sentence for life.” – Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Related Product

Proposed legislation to ensure Canada’s most heinous criminals are subject to a mandatory life sentence without parole – See more at: http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/news/2015/03/04/proposed-legislation-ensure-canadas-most-heinous-criminals-are-subject-mandatory