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Omnibus crime bill 14 months later — how’s it playing out in court
OTTAWA — More than a year after the government’s controversial omnibus crime bill became law, a lengthy response to a written question in the House of Commons is shedding some light on how it’s played...
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Ombudsman unveils Victims’ Bill of Rights wish list, 3-year term renewed
OTTAWA — Renewed for another three-year term Monday, Canada’s ombudsman for victims of crime has unveiled a wish list for the new Victims’ Bill of Rights that could include enhanced powers for her...
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Manslaughter conviction thrown out over lack of aboriginals in Ontario jury pool
Ontario’s top court ordered a new trial Friday for a man convicted of killing his friend after concluding that his rights had been violated because the province failed to ensure adequate aboriginal...
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NDP MP urges government to back cyberbullying bill
OTTAWA — New Democrat MP Robert Chisholm says he’s hopeful the federal government will lend its support to his private member’s bill or quickly put forward its own legislation to make the...
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Solicitor-client privilege, Federal Court diversity to be debated by lawyers
OTTAWA — It’s time for the Canadian government to come up with a clear policy to address issues of solicitor-client privilege when lawyers are asked to hand over their laptops and smart phones to...
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Justice Minister and Attorney General Peter MacKay reveals justice priorities...
OTTAWA — When newly minted Justice Minister and Attorney General Peter MacKay addresses the Canadian Bar Association for the first time on Monday, don’t expect him to follow in the footsteps of his...
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Canadian Bar Association urges federal government to boost legal aid funding
Canada’s justice system has become out of reach for many of those who need it most, according to a new report by the Canadian Bar Association that calls on the federal government to restore legal aid...
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Economic implications of legalizing marijuana, fining for possession up for...
OTTAWA — Liberal leader Justin Trudeau wants it legalized. Canadian cops want to fine people for simple possession. Forget jobs and the economy, it seems marijuana is back on the public agenda. Still,...
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BLOG: U of O profs battle over legal point ahead of school debut
Canadian politicians are fessing up to smoking pot. OTTAWA — It could be an awkward first day of school on Tuesday for two University of Ottawa law professors who’ve been duking it out all week over...
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Prime Minister Stephen Harper unveils plan to toughen sentences for child...
OTTAWA — The federal government is again targeting child predators with new legislation in the fall that will impose harsher sentences for child pornographers and pedophiles. The new Tougher Penalties...
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Prime Minister chides Justin Trudeau, but says he’ll look into police...
OTTAWA — Justin Trudeau’s decision to unveil his party’s policy on pot before the economy shows “poor judgment,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday. However, at the same time the prime...
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New laws proposed for child sex tourists
The federal government is getting even tougher on child predators at home and abroad, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Monday as he unveiled plans for a publicly accessible national sex offender...
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NDP MP Pat Martin says union donation scrutiny is tough enough
OTTAWA — Under fire for accepting donations from trade unions to help pay off a massive debt incurred in a defamation lawsuit related to the robocalls affair, New Democrat MP Pat Martin says he was...
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Prison watchdog raises concerns about inmate self-injury, 6 years after death...
OTTAWA — Canada’s prison watchdog says chronic self-injury among female inmates remains a challenge for corrections workers who continue to turn to pepper spray, segregation, physical restraints,...
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Federal Appeal’s Court Judge Marc Nadon latest Supreme Court nominee
OTTAWA — Within moments of his nomination to Canada’s highest court, Federal Appeal’s Court Justice Marc Nadon came under fire for being a man. While his nomination maintains the critical regional...
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Security certificates, Senate and sex offenders all on the agenda for Supreme...
OTTAWA – From the future of the beleaguered Senate, to the constitutionality of security certificates, Canada’s top court is in for a busy fall session. The court will face some of these cases with...
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Conservative crime agenda to keep Parliament busy this fall
OTTAWA – If you thought the federal Conservatives had completed their “tough-on-crime” agenda by now, think again. Justice policy plays to the party’s base of supporters, is hard for the opposition to...
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Complaint against justice minister over comments on Justin Trudeau’s pot use...
OTTAWA — The Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society has dismissed a complaint against Attorney General Peter MacKay, whose comments about Justin Trudeau’s pot smoking struck a nerve with an outspoken...
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New Supreme Court Justice Marc Nadon won’t hear cases pending legal challenge...
OTTAWA – It’s been a tough first week for Canada’s newest Supreme Court justice, who says he won’t participate in matters before the court just yet because his appointment is now the subject of a legal...
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Opposition blames Harper government for shorthanded Supreme Court bench
OTTAWA — The opposition is raising concerns about a shorthanded bench after newly minted Supreme Court Justice Marc Nadon stepped aside pending the outcome of a legal challenge to his appointment. Both...
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Federal government expected to apologize for bungling Ernest MacIntosh...
OTTAWA — The federal government is expected to apologize for bungling a child-molestation case in which 17 charges against a Nova Scotia businessman were dropped. Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh was convicted...
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Top court dismisses case of repeat sex offender with mental capacity of...
OTTAWA — Canada’s highest court has dismissed a bid by a mentally challenged repeat sex offender to have multiple convictions for sex offences reversed on the grounds he was unfit stand trial for any...
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Peter MacKay apologizes to victims in botched N.S. child molestation case
The federal government is taking limited blame for some of the delays that led to charges being dropped against a convicted Nova Scotia child molester and is formally apologizing to the man’s nine...
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Senate scandal overshadows some awkward questions about sovereignty
OTTAWA — Amid the all-consuming debate over the Senate expenses affair since Parliament’s return in mid-October, another thorny political question has been playing out almost unnoticed in Canada...
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Federal government to consider expanding consecutive sentencing
OTTAWA — Justice Minister Peter MacKay says the government is considering expanding consecutive sentencing provisions for a slew of serious offences. Sexual offences, aggravated sexual assault, certain...
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Federal government to table bill aimed at combating cyberbullying
The federal government is poised to table new legislation Wednesday, aimed at modernizing the Criminal Code and combating cyberbullying, Postmedia News has learned. The bill, dubbed the Protecting...
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Bourassa byelection: Will Liberal red be overtaken by NDP orange?
MONTREAL – She’s delightfully blunt, with a self-deprecating sense of humour. He’s a likeable mama’s boy with a strong sense of community. Both are Haitian. Both are extremely successful in their...
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Cyberbully bill includes sweeping changes to bring Criminal Code into modern era
OTTAWA — A sweeping cyberbullying bill introduced Wednesday appears to go beyond its initial intent to make the distribution of sexually explicit images without a person’s consent a criminal offence...
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Peter MacKay defends $2M cost of Halifax defence forum
OTTAWA — As hundreds of delegates descend on Halifax for a fifth annual global security conference, Justice Minister Peter MacKay is defending the cost of the $2 million event that includes his wife...
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NDP to table drunk driving bill
OTTAWA — ‘Tis the season for drunk driving and the NDP wants to crack down with a private member’s bill that will allow for random breath tests. St. Jean MP Tarik Brahmi will table the bill Thursday,...
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Privacy watchdog raises concerns about cyberbullying bill
OTTAWA — Canada’s privacy watchdog is raising some concerns about a new cyberbullying bill introduced last week that she nonetheless calls a marked improvement over an earlier incarnation that the...
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Explainer: Top court to rule on the future of prostitution in Canada
OTTAWA — Canada’s highest court will decide Friday whether prostitution laws violate the Constitution in a landmark ruling that will have implications right across the country. The case was brought by...
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Top court to face shortage of Quebec judges this winter
OTTAWA — Only one Quebec judge will likely be on the panel when at least three Quebec civil cases are heard by the Supreme Court of Canada this winter, a turn of events that highlights the importance...
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Rehtaeh’s law: What will change about sharing intimate photos
OTTAWA — As the federal government launches its latest attack on cyberbullying — a public awareness campaign dubbed Stop Hating Online — questions remain about what activities could land you behind...
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Citizenship fraud crackdown stymied by tie-ups in Federal Court
OTTAWA — Government efforts to revoke the citizenship of those who’ve obtained it fraudulently have apparently hit a snag. According to the most recent Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC)...
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Victims’ rights bill would limit deadline for offenders to pay surcharge
Patrick Smith Ottawa Citizen OTTAWA – The federal government’s newly unveiled Victims’ Bill of Rights limits the discretion of judges over when a person convicted of a crime pays a victim fine...
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Victims’ advocates ask: Should pillow talk become court testimony?
Patrick Smith Ottawa Citizen Pillow talk could become court testimony soon, and that prospect has perplexed some experts who are examining the government’s new Victims Bill of Rights. A section in the...
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Elections Canada paid $47,000 for former Supreme Court justice to review its...
OTTAWA – Elections Canada paid more than $47,000 to a former Supreme Court justice who gave the agency a glowing endorsement of its investigation into complaints about misleading phone calls in the...
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Canada’s controversial ‘Mr. Big’ police tactic a ‘very effective tool,’ top...
A controversial made-in-Canada undercover police technique designed to draw confessions from suspects is here to stay. The outgoing president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police told...
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University disciplinary rules not always fair to students: critics
When Carleton University students were seen recently wearing tank tops seeming to mock the campus’ campaign promoting a discrimination-free environment, school officials denounced their behaviour and...
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