Majority of Canadians say justice is ‘too lenient’ on violent criminals: poll

A large majority of Canadians say Canada’s justice system is too lenient on violent criminals and too many violent offenders are repeatedly offered bail, according to a new poll.

Released on June 15, Army Marketing questionnaire conducted on behalf of Postmedia indicates that most Canadians are prepared to take a harder line against perpetrators of violence than their governments.

When asked if “there are too many repeat offenders being offered bail,” a large majority of Canadians (79 percent) agreed.

When asked if they agreed that Canada’s justice system is “too lenient on offenders found guilty of committing a violent crime,” 78 percent agreed.

The findings are based on an online survey of 1,525 Canadians aged 18 and over from June 2 to June 4.

When it comes to crime, violent crimes such as murder and assault (55 percent), followed by illegal firearm possession (41 percent) and drug and substance abuse (37 percent), are the top priorities governments should focus on.

‘Catch and release’

The poll found that only 32 percent of respondents agree that the country’s criminal justice system is robust and fair.

“[This suggests] a lack of confidence in the system’s ability to deliver appropriate and proportionate justice,” it said.

According to the findings, more than two-thirds (68 percent) of Canadians said the country’s bail bond approach is best characterized as a “catch and release” system.

On 16 May, the Liberal government submitted Account C-48 to reform the bail system. The proposed changes to Canada’s Penal Code will create a reversed burden of proof so that the defense must now prove why a suspect should be granted bail, rather than the current approach, which requires prosecutors to prove why the suspect should not .

The proposed changes come after months of pressure from provinces and territories to reduce the number of repeat offenders released on bail. Premiers had unanimously asked Ottawa to expand reverse-onus provisions.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilièvre has criticized the Liberals’ new measures, saying “they have not reversed catch and release”.

The proposed legislation “does not guarantee that a repeat violent offender recently charged with a violent crime will remain in prison until the sentence is completed,” Poilièvre said.

Leger’s poll found that 91 percent of Canadians “strongly agree” that repeat violent criminal offenders should have their access to bail “severely limited or revoked”.

Regarding the issue of substance abuse in the country, the survey noted that respondents are more in favor of law enforcement and treatment actions to address the issue. These measures include prosecuting those who bring drugs into the community (86 percent), enforcing treatment programs that require severely addicted individuals to attend addiction treatment (71 percent), and enacting stricter laws prohibiting serious drug use, such as opioids , cocaine, meth. and ecstasy (69 percent).

“Decriminalization” of illegal street drugs (33 percent) and “safer supply” (48 percent) approaches are less supported, researchers wrote.

Tara MacIsaac, Matthew Horwood and Peter Wilson contributed to this report.