CAMBRIDGE, ON – Today, the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Member of Parliament for Cambridge & North Dumfries welcomed proposed new government legislation to strengthen the National Sex Offender Registry and the National DNA Data Bank.
“Based on what we have heard from Police services and victims’ groups, we need to strengthen the National Sex Offender Registry to better protect our children and communities from sexual predators. Our government agrees,” said Minister Goodyear.
Currently, a convicted sex offender is registered only when the Crown requests it, and only when a judge agrees. Today’s proposed legislation would make registration automatic on conviction. The legislation would also require all convicted sex offenders to provide a DNA sample for the National DNA Data Bank and to make information on offender’s vehicles included in the Registry.
In addition, current rules allow police to use the Registry only to solve crimes after they happen. Proposed legislation will allow police to use the Registry pro-actively to prevent crime. Under this legislation, sex offenders found guilty outside of Canada will also be included.
Background
The National Sex Offender Registry is a national registration system for sex offenders who have been convicted of designated sex offences and ordered by the courts to report annually to police. The Registry includes such information as:
- name, date of birth, gender, and current address and telephone number of the sex offender;
- sex offender’s address of employment, of volunteer work and/or educational institution;
- current photograph;
- height and weight, including identifying marks (e.g. tattoos, scars);
- observable characteristics, including eye and hair colour;
- sex offence(s) for which the offender has been convicted and the date and location of the offence(s);
- the sex offender’s fingerprints;
- Age and gender of any victim; and,
- Date and duration of the Registration order and the Court that made the order.
In 2008, amendments to the National Defence Act came into force to ensure that measures in the SOIRA apply to Canadian Forces personnel found guilty of designated offences at court martial.
The National DNA Data Bank is maintained by the RCMP and was established in the DNA Identification Act which came into force in June 2000. The DNA Data Bank consists of two collections or indices of DNA profiles: a crime scene index, containing DNA profiles derived from bodily substances found at a crime scene; and a convicted offenders index, containing DNA profiles derived from bodily substances taken from offenders against whom post-conviction DNA data bank orders have been made.
Today, to strengthen the Registry and the Data Bank, amendments are re-introduced to the following acts – the Sex Offender Information Registration Act, the Criminal Code, the National Defence Act and the International Transfer of Offenders Act.
The proposed amendments include the following fundamental reforms: automatic inclusion in the registry of convicted sex offenders; mandatory DNA sampling for convicted sex offenders; proactive use of the Registry by police; registration of sex offenders convicted abroad; notifications to other police jurisdictions when high-risk registered offenders travel; and, amendments to the National Defence Act to ensure that reforms apply to the military justice system.
As well, several other operational and administration matters are addressed. Proposed amendments are outlined below.
Automatic Inclusion in the National Sex Offender Registry
This proposal would require that sexual offence convictions would result in an automatic Sex Offender Registry order and a DNA data bank order (making it mandatory to provide DNA samples for inclusion in the National DNA Data Bank).The amendments would therefore also toughen the DNA scheme to ensure that all designated sexual offences result in not only a Sex offender Registry order, but also in a DNA data bank order.
SOIRA and DNA registration would be automatic upon conviction, or a finding of not being criminally responsible, for a prerequisite sexual offence, making it mandatory for the sentencing judge to impose an order to register and provide a DNA sample. The Crown prosecutor will no longer be required to bring an application for an order. This provision will apply prospectively only. However, in the case of a person not found criminally responsible under the Criminal Code, this would not lead to automatic inclusion in the DNA data bank and the Crown would need to apply.
This proposal would ensure the primary designated offence list for forensic DNA analysis is amended to include all SOIRA designated sexual offences.
For 13 apparently non-sexual offences, the Court would have to make a finding that there was intent to commit a designated sexual offence, prior to inclusion on the Registry
(e.g., manslaughter, trespass at night).
Prerequisite Criminal Code offences for automatic inclusion include:
- offence in relation to sexual offences against children committed outside Canada
- sexual interference;
- invitation to sexual touching;
- sexual exploitation;
- sexual exploitation of person with disability;
- incest;
- bestiality in presence of or by a child;
- child pornography (making, possession, distribution);
- parent or guardian procuring sexual activity;
- luring a child by means of a computer system;
- exposure;
- stupefying or overpowering for the purpose of sexual intercourse;
- living on the avails of prostitution of a person under age of eighteen;
- aggravated offence – living on the avails of prostitution of a person under age of eighteen;
- obtaining prostitution of person under age of eighteen;
- sexual assault;
- sexual assault with a weapon, threats to a third party or causing bodily harm;
- aggravated sexual assault – use of a restricted firearm or prohibited firearm or any firearm in connection with criminal organization;
- aggravated sexual assault – use of firearm;
- aggravated sexual assault; and,
- removal of a child from Canada.
Proactive Use of the Registry
The inability to proactively use the Registry has been consistently raised by police services as a limitation in their efforts to prevent sex crimes.
The purpose of the Sex Offender Registry would be expanded to include use for the prevention of sexual crimes not just investigation. In this regard, police would be permitted to access the database for consulting, disclosing, matching of information and verifying compliance.
Inclusion of offenders convicted of sexual offences abroad upon return to Canada
Under the current legislation, Canadians returning to Canada after being convicted abroad of a sexual offence are not included in the Registry.
- There would be a proposal to establish an administrative process to enable registration of Canadians convicted abroad of sex offences and returning to Canada under the International Transfer of Offenders Act.
- Individuals entering Canada who have been convicted outside of Canada of a sexual offence, served their sentence abroad and released by a foreign jurisdiction would be required to report to police within 7 days of arriving in Canada under threat of criminal prosecution to ensure that a Sex Offender Registry order can be considered.
- Individuals who have been convicted of a sexual offence and served their sentence abroad would then be required to register with the Sex Offender Registry once served with a notice to do so by the province or territory where they reside. Any individual subject to such a requirement to register will have the right to a hearing before a judge to determine whether the foreign conviction was a proper basis for the requirement to register.
- This proposal would allow travel notifications to other jurisdictions about National Sex Offender Registry registrants to enable police to advise other foreign or Canadian police jurisdictions that registered high-risk sex offenders are traveling to their area.
- Federal and provincial correctional agencies would have authority to advise Registry officials of registered sex offenders’ releases from and any re-admissions to custody and their addresses.
- Sex offenders would be required to provide notice in advance for any absences from home address of 7 days or more.
- Sex offender would be required to provide the name of their employer or the person who engages them on a volunteer basis or retains them and the type of employment they do.
- In addition, the sex offender would need to notify registry officials within seven days regarding any changes in employment or volunteer work and address/location where they work.
- One-way electronic link would be allowed with other investigational systems for comparison purposes, provided no new permanent link is established.
- Where a registered sex offender is serving an intermittent or conditional sentence, the offender would be required to register.
- Correctional authorities would be permitted to notify the registration centre of the sex offender’s address where a registered offender is serving the custodial portion of a sentence temporarily in the community for a period of 7 days or more.
- There would be general authority for adding purely administrative data fields in the registry that are required to ensure proper maintenance and administration, including, for example, dates of annual reporting, last reporting and death of offender.
- The initial reporting date for sex offenders will change from 15 to 7 days after sentencing or release from custody. For a sex offender who is required to register at a Canadian Forces registration centre, the existing 15-day time period for initial registration of the Sex Offender Information Registration Act will be retained.
- There is a proposal to include the offences of "murder" and "voyeurism" in section 490.011 (b) of the Criminal Code and the offence of "compelling others to commit bestiality" in 490.011 (a) of the Criminal Code, as offences subject to registration orders.
- A proposal would clarify that for the purpose of disclosure of registry information necessary for the administration of justice, the RCMP Commissioner’s authority may be delegated to appropriate officials within the RCMP or other federal agency where required.
- In any prosecution under section 490.031 of the Criminal Code or section 119.1 of the National Defence Act, evidence of a failure to comply with an Order to Comply would be provided by certificate evidence without need to prove the signature.
- There would be a proposal to provide that the offence of failure to register is hybrid offence, whether it is a first or subsequent offence and the offence of exposure for a sexual purpose is also a hybrid offence.
- The court would be required to notify the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Attorney General of the Province, or the minister of justice of the Territory whenever an Order to Comply, Termination Order or Exemption Order, or result thereof on appeal by either party, is granted.
- This proposal would clarify that wherever an individual has been convicted of more than one sexual offence against different victims, or against one victim at separate points in time, the duration of the Order would be for life, even where the convictions for those offences were entered on the same date.
- This proposal would clarify that where an offender has no fixed address at the time of conviction, the address of the offender would be deemed to be the address of the court where the conviction was obtained.
- The registry would also contain information on the license plate, make, model, body type, year of manufacture and colour for vehicles that are registered in the sex offender’s name or that are used regularly such as company vehicles.
- This proposal would also allow for Registry officials to enter information in the database regarding a registered sex- offender’s method of operating in relation to their offences.
