Parliamentary Committee Notes: Process for High Profile Offenders Including Magnotta and Bernardo

Issue:

Following the high profile transfer of an inmate from a maximum-security to a medium-security institution, the processes which guide transfers have been the subject of criticism and calls for reform.

Proposed Response:

• Correctional Service Canada (CSC) has a policy on information sharing which outlines a process by which case management staff must flag high profile offenders in CSC’s system and brief up on events accordingly within CSC.
• As defined in policy, a high profile offender is an offender whose offence dynamics elicited or have a potential to elicit a community reaction in the form of significant public and/or media interest.
• While notifications of transfers were provided to the Minister’s Office in the past, this was done without a formal process. With the issuing of the Ministerial Direction on July 20, 2023, prior to transferring a high-profile offender to any reduced security level, CSC will notify me, as Minister of Public Safety, formally and directly.
• CSC also advises my office of other major incidents including deaths in custody and escapes. This notification is typically completed by email.
• For transfers, for example, information shared contains the name of the offender, offences, available information about the anticipated event, and institutions involved. CSC also may share communications products, as happened in the case of Paul Bernardo's transfer, if public interest is anticipated.
• Depending on the nature of the event, CSC may also complete verbal notifications or conduct verbal briefings, as required.

If pressed on transfer of Offender Magnotta

• The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is committed to maintaining the safety and security of our institutions and our communities.
• As part of this, CSC must review the security classification of medium and maximum-security inmates at least every two years to ensure they are placed at the appropriate institution.
• Decisions pertaining to security reclassifications are very thorough and only when it is determined that an offender can be safely managed in a medium-security facility will such a decision to transfer be made.
• The offender began their sentence in 2014 and was transferred to a medium-security facility in 2022, which has a well-defined perimeter with high-fences, is strictly guarded 24/7 and is patrolled by armed officers.
• There is nothing new regarding transfers relevant to this offender, since 2022.
• This offender has been securely behind bars for close to a decade, and continues to be in a secure institution, serving a Life sentence.
• It is important to note that, at any time, an inmate can also be immediately returned to a higher security level if this is deemed necessary to ensure the safety of the public or our institutions.

Background:

High profile offender: an offender whose offence dynamics elicited or have a potential to elicit a community reaction in the form of significant public and/or media interest.

Ministerial Direction

On July 20, 2023, the Ministerial Direction was issued to the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) with the intent to ensure victims’ rights are considered from the beginning of the transfer process and strengthen the way it shares information with victims and the government. The direction also seeks to improve notification to victims surrounding security classification and transfers of offenders, and establishes a formal process to notify the Minister of Public Safety.

In accordance with the recommendations made by the Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime in 2019, CSC was directed to:

• Gather and consider victim information at the outset of the decision-making process or as soon as a voluntary transfer request is being considered for support by CSC.
• Use their Victim Notification flag system when they begin considering a transfer application that may be supported by CSC to allow victim services officers to proactively collect input from victims in advance of the Assessment for Decision.
• Make changes to policy to require all CSC staff to always consider whether any victims live near the institution to which the transfer is being considered, and wherever possible, transfer the offender to another institution.

The Ministerial Direction also require that the Minister of Public Safety receive formal and direct notification regarding security classification and transfers of high-profile offenders. These are offenders whose offences elicited or have a potential to elicit significant public interest. Such notification will be provided formally via email, but will also include text notification to the Minister of Public Safety directly from the Commissioner of CSC to ensure immediacy.

Responsibilities

The CSC Institutional Head (IH) is responsible for:

• Implementing a process to ensure the high profile offender flag is set in the Offender Management System (OMS) for any inmate who meets the definition of a high profile offender; and
• Implementing a process to ensure procedures are followed when a high profile offender is being placed, pursuant to Commissioner's Directive 701 on information sharing to ensure information is received and shared with the appropriate individuals and/or groups pursuant to legal requirements and protocols. This includes the provision of information to CSC, information sharing with offenders, or outside of CSC.

In Commissioner Directive 784, the IH is responsible for the following:

• developing processes to ensure the Victim Services Unit is provided with notification of events and relevant decisions regarding offenders with victim notification pursuant to the Victim Services Notification Guide (Annex C)
• ensuring that decision sheets provide a rationale when not imposing a condition to protect the victim on an offender’s unescorted temporary absence (CSC authority) in cases where the victim has submitted a statement pursuant to subsection 133(3.1) of the CCRA
• facilitating the attendance of victim observers at the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) hearings held at the site and ensure that victims’ needs are taken into consideration in the preparation of hearing rooms and waiting rooms at the site
• ensuring that information regarding CSC’s victim services and restorative justice programs/ victim-offender mediation services is available within operational units
• ensuring a process which conforms to CD 085 – Correspondence and Telephone Communication is in place to prevent unwanted contact and respect non-communication orders, while allowing offenders to communicate with victims who wish to maintain contact with the offender.

The Regional Deputy Commissioner:

• Ensures processes outlined in Commissioner's Directive 784 on Victim Engagement are followed to manage the engagement of victims within CSC by upholding victims’ rights and ensuring timely and effective information sharing pursuant to legislation, including:
• delivery of services to victims by regional Victim Services Units;
• that policy direction with respect to victim notification is followed; and
• implementation of protocols in compliance with provincial and municipal legislation or programs pertaining to witness protection and the disclosure of information relating to them.

Transfer of offender Magnotta

In Canada, our correctional system is fundamentally based on the rehabilitation of offenders, even if some remain incarcerated for the rest of their lives. This is the Correctional Service of Canada’s legislated mandate. CSC is constantly balancing many factors, including public safety risks; safe, secure and humane treatment; and victim rights.

Decisions around offender specific cases, including security classification and transfers as well as CSC operations fall under the purview of CSC. These are not decisions made by the Minister of Public Safety nor their office.

The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has an effective intake, assessment and classification system for new inmates. Accurate initial and on-going assessment of individual needs and risks is an important element of Canadian Federal corrections.

The assessment of an offender’s security classification is guided by law: the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA), and the Corrections and Conditional Release Regulations (CCRR). CSC’s approach to both initial security classification and security reclassification includes the use of evidence-based assessment instruments together with the professional judgment of specialized staff and psychological assessments, if applicable.

CSC regularly re-assesses all offenders' security classification to ensure that they continue to be placed at the appropriate security level.

Over 95% of offenders in maximum security are there as a result of requiring a high degree of supervision and control within the institution, which means that they cannot be safely managed in medium security, as they present a risk to the safety of staff, other offenders, or the overall institution. For example, an offender can still be a high public safety risk, yet CSC can effectively and safely manage them in a medium-security setting.

Date modified:

2024-08-07