Pardon Changes – CBC Power and Politics – 1 year later

Power and Politics I was lucky enough to be invited to be interviewed on CBC’s Power and Politics. The invitation was a result of another invitation to speak at the Discussion Panel mentioned in the previous post. It all concerns the pardon changes that took place over a year ago as a result of the Conservative’s omnibus crime bill. For information on that click here.

The forum was a success and gained a lot more interest than I had originally expected. Myself, along with representatives from the Elizabeth Fry Society, the John Howard Society and other advocacy groups spoke about the changes we’ve experienced. We also heard from some former offenders whose testimony showed a lot of courage.

The interview can be viewed on CBC’s website. Below are some screen shots. I am hoping to get the video of the panel discussion and post that but it likely won’t happen in the next week, so please stay tuned and pardon the pun.

I would like to add that I firmly believe the pardon changes included in the omnibus crime bill which came from bill C23B were unnecessary and should be repealed. I also think the Conservative government accomplished exactly what it wanted with this bill, which was to limit the number of pardons being granted. This is a shame because pardons are a valuable social reintegration tool and rehabilitation is the best way to keep criminal offences at a minimum.

Pardon Changes Include:

1. Increased waiting periods

2. Increase in costs

3. Certain offenders excluded regardless of the sentence

4. Increased scrutiny of applications

5. Pardons renamed to record suspensions

6. Give Parole Board absolute authority to refuse a pardon

Full Video: CBC Power and Politics – Pardon section begins at about 1.32min