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Pardon Me? Canadians Are A Larcenous Lot
Pubdate: Sun, 29 May 2005
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2005 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Les McLaughlin
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?224 (Cannabis and Driving)
Note: Les McLaughlin is an Ottawa writer
PARDON ME?: CANADIANS ARE A LARCENOUS LOT
..But There Is A Way To Wipe Your Slate Clean Again
Few would ever think of Canada as a country of criminals. But at last
count, in fact, three million of us were. Which also means most of us know
someone with a criminal record, or that if we were to walk into a roomful
of Canadians, one in 10 of them would be known, intimately, by the law.
Remarkable? Not really, when the number of offences that could result in
such a record are considered. From stealing a stop sign as a prank, to
possession of a small amount of marijuana, to blowing over .08 on a
breathalyser or assaulting someone. They all yield the same result on
conviction: a criminal record.
And, unfortunately for many, it can become a millstone around their necks
for life as the offence is recorded and retained on a computer data file in
the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) at RCMP Headquarters in Ottawa.
Those records are readily accessible to police forces across Canada and
around the world. However, unlike in many countries where "once a criminal,
always a criminal," Canadians with a criminal record can do something about it.
In 1970, changes to the Criminal Code resulted in a way to hide, but not
eliminate a criminal record. It's called a pardon.
"About half of the three million Canadians with criminal records will
qualify for a pardon," says Yves Bellefeuille, Director of Clemency and
Pardons with the National Parole Board.
So it comes as a surprise that only 22,000 applications are received each
year. Of those, 16,000 fill the forms out properly for review by the parole
board. Of those, 99 per cent are granted.
Bellefeuille says that to receive a pardon, an applicant must obtain a
document from CPIC. It contains their convictions, charges, discharges and
an arrest record. A set of fingerprints is also required along with
information as to whether the conviction was "summary" or "by indictment."
There is a three-year waiting period after sentencing on a summary
conviction and five years if the conviction was for an indictable offence.
Former or present members of the Armed Forces must provide a military
conduct report.
(Bellefeuille also says the documents must be accompanied by the "new,
easy-to-use pardon application form from the National Parole Board.")
"Some people wonder why they should bother with a pardon since they have
never had a problem," Bellefeuille says.
The significance, perhaps, escapes them.
According to Ottawa lawyer James Harbic, "a criminal record, no matter how
minor the offence, can have a major impact on a person's daily life in Canada."
If a person has signed an agreement permitting a police record check, then
getting a job or a promotion, adopting children, getting bonded, renting an
apartment or offering services as a volunteer can present problems.
Even people hoping to volunteer their time may run into a roadblock if they
have a record.
"Screening is essential when choosing individuals who offer to volunteer,"
says Marlene Deboisbriand, national president of Ottawa-based Volunteer
Canada, "and police record checks are part of the screening process to
determine if a person is suitable."
Because such police checks only flag that there's a record and usually do
not reveal details of an offence, Deboisbriand says volunteer organizations
must ask a person if they will share information about their record.
And often, she says, it becomes a judgment call for volunteer groups. A
person with a criminal record for impaired driving, for example, may be
questionable as a driver. Similarly, a drug-related offence may work
against someone wishing to work with children. With a pardon, the police
record check will produce no flags.
"The RCMP is the custodian of criminal records," says Bellefeuille. "If a
pardon is granted, they must remove the records from the main data base.
The goal is to remove the stigma attached to a criminal record. Individuals
only get a pardon because they deserve it."
A pardon, while important in Canada, doesn't mean much internationally,
especially for travellers in a post 9/11 world.
"A pardon is fine," Harbic says, "but it does not extinguish a person's
criminal record. It only removes it from the central data base of the RCMP.
But once that record is in the data base of the FBI or Interpol, it will
stay there."
Keith Powell, the United States Consul-General in Ottawa, says Canadian
pardons are not recognized by U.S. authorities.
"A person whose criminal record is on the American data base and wishes to
enter the United States is not exempt because of a pardon."
Powell says the best advice for someone crossing the border who has either
a criminal record or a pardon, is to be up-front with customs officers.
"Be honest," counsels Powell, if asked if you've ever been convicted of a
criminal offence. Answering "no" because you have been pardoned under
Canadian law means you have lied to a U.S. Customs and Immigration Officer,
which is grounds for removal and a five-year ban on re-entry.
Powell says treatment of a person who admits to a criminal record at the
border is a judgment call by the customs officer.
"There are criminal offences that will result in the person being denied
entry," says Powell. "Any drug conviction is frowned on at the border but
an impaired driving conviction will likely get you waved through with a
'have a nice day.'"
Powell adds that it works both ways.
"An American citizen might not be allowed into Canada with an impaired
charge but might be with a minor drug-related offence."
Canadians who have committed a "crime of moral turpitude" (sex offences) or
drug-related crimes, Powell says, should apply for a "waiver" to allow them
entry to the U.S. Such a waiver allows people with criminal records to
travel to the U.S. and is issued by Immigration and Naturalization Services
at any border crossing. It can take six to nine months to process and is
valid for five years.
"The best advice," says lawyer Harbic, "is to avoid getting a criminal
record. Acquittal is most desirable, but if it is unlikely, then other
avenues include the diversionary program that is negotiated by the defence
lawyer and the crown when an offence is relatively minor."
A conditional or absolute discharge should also be considered. Notably,
lawyers for both former politician Svend Robinson and hockey player Todd
Bertuzzi were able to negotiate conditional discharges. However, even
though discharges are not considered convictions, records of discharged
offences are maintained by CPIC for a limited time.
The record of an absolute or conditional discharge granted after July 24,
1992 is removed from the CPIC computer system one year and three years
respectively after the court decision. The record is "purged" of all but
basic identifying information which can only be accessed under strict
conditions.
"Anyone with a pardon has demonstrated that they truly want to clear their
name and deserve equal treatment in such things as job applications or
promotions," says Harbic. "Just remember that a record of the offence will
always exist somewhere."
"There have been discussions about removing the record completely," says
Yves Bellefeuille, "but there are those who think the country is not ready
for that yet."
Since the program began in 1970, 330,000 pardons have been granted and
about 11,000 have been revoked. Pardons, it seems, are not necessarily
permanent.
"You don't need to be convicted again to lose the pardon. It can be revoked
if you are not of good conduct," Bellefeuille says. "We make sure that if
you get a pardon, you deserve it."
The time required to get a pardon depends on many factors. If a person has
moved frequently, then record checks will have to be done with more than
one police jurisdiction. Generally it takes about nine months for a
properly filled form to be processed
Though there are a number of companies in Canada that will do this work for
a fee, Bellefeuille says the process is relatively straightforward and he
recommends people do it themselves.
Yet even in the post 9/11 world of security consciousness, there hasn't
been an increase in pardon applications. Bellefeuille says there are a
number of reasons.
"Some people don't know of the service, some just don't know they have a
criminal record and others simply don't want anything to do with the
justice system anymore."
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MAP posted-by: Beth