Two federal ministers are pushing back against provincial leaders who are urging Ottawa to re-evaluate its bail legislation in the wake of a fatal B.C. home invasion by a suspect with an extensive criminal history, saying the premiers themselves need to “step up.”
Justice Minister Arif Virani and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc made the comments jointly after receiving a letter signed by the 13 provincial and territorial leaders demanding a review of bail reform law Bill C-48, which came into effect in January.
“We listened to the provinces and territories when they asked for changes to the Criminal Code,” the ministers said in a joint statement posted to X. “Now they need to step up and enforce the law. Provinces are responsible for the administration of bail.”
Under Bill C-48, a reverse onus is placed on violent offenders, forcing them to remain in detention while awaiting trial unless they can prove they are not a flight risk or a threat to public safety.
But the premiers say there is a weakness in the system, pointing to the murder of 30-year-old Tori Dunn, who was killed in her Surrey home on June 16.
Adam Troy Mann, the 40-year-old Ontario man charged in connection with her murder, was at the time facing an unrelated aggravated assault charge for an alleged attack in Surrey three weeks earlier. Court records show Mr. Mann has a long criminal history, including being sentenced to years in prison for robbery and weapons offences.
The premiers described Ms. Dunn’s murder as one example of a growing trend of “repeat and violent offenders being released into our communities without proper considerations,” they said in the letter they penned at the recent Council of the Federation meeting.
“Clearly, in this case, Bill C-48 failed to keep a violent offender from posing a serious risk to public safety,” they wrote.
Mr. Virani and Mr. LeBlanc refuted that statement, however, saying the provinces need to do more on their end.
“More needs to be done to make sure police and prosecutors have the tools they need for effective monitoring and enforcement,” the pair said. “Provincial courts, prosecutors and police hold all the data needed to evaluate how the bail system is working. We expect provinces and territories to collect and share that data diligently, as they committed to do.”
The premiers from all 13 provinces and territories wrote to Ottawa for the first time in January 2023, urging the government to take “immediate action” to strengthen the country’s bail system.
Ottawa responded by making changes in the form of Bill C-48, but the premiers say there are holes in the legislation.
The premiers want the government to “address gaps that are clearly taking place” with the new bail laws, B.C. Premier David Eby said while speaking at a July 22 news conference.
The federal government must “ensure that every judge has access to the training and education that they need to understand the implications of the changes to the criminal law,” Mr. Eby said, adding that change is essential to prevent another “horrific story” like Ms. Dunn’s murder.
B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma has said prosecutors had argued against the suspect being released on bail.
Ms. Sharma said in a June 28 statement that the province would be “looking at what happened here and advocating to Ottawa to ensure the federal Criminal Code is responsive to public safety needs.”
