Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservative government aren’t going far enough to protect Canadians from pedophiles and sexual offenders released into the community.
Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan announced Monday the government is overhauling the federal registry as part of its law and order agenda. Described as “sweeping changes” that really amount to plugging a few holes, the proposed tweaks include listing all convicted sex offenders, not just those the judge orders, as well as requiring samples of their DNA. The police, who can only access the database after a crime has been committed, will now be able to search a name or description if they see someone behaving suspiciously near places where children congregate. Canadians who commit sex crimes overseas will be required to notify the police when they return to Canada, and those on the list who move will have their information sent to the police in their new municipality or country.
On its face the proposed amendments, if passed, seem significant. The Conservatives state that only 42 per cent of convicted sex offenders were required by the request of the Crown and order of a judge to register when any individual who commits a sexual offence against anyone should be included to begin with. Removing barriers to police work is also a positive step forward, as is creating a corresponding DNA databank.
But ignored in these minor tweaks to the system is the safety of the public. While police agencies across Canada have been increasingly more willing to notify communities when high-risk offenders are released or move to a specific neighbourhood, the public still has no idea whether or not a sexual predator might be living in its midst. Granted, police forces across the country are more liberal than they once were about warning the public, but not every convicted predator gets their mugshot and a short brief printed in the paper.
In the United States, many state sex offender registries are open to the public, whereas our federal system can be used only by law enforcement agencies. Monday’s “sweeping changes” do not include any changes to that effect. The concerns of many Canadians — especially parents — would be put to rest if they could see which people in their neighbourhood might be in a position to cause harm to their children. Sadly, the courts favour privacy in the case of sex offenders over the public’s need and right to know. Critics of an open and public registry point to the 2006 case of Stephen Marshal, a Canadian who killed two Americans listed on Maine’s sex offender registry before killing himself. Such instances of vigilante action, which Canadians are warned against in every single police bulletin, are exceedingly rare.
Organized victims’ groups have repeatedly posted online petitions to the federal government, calling for an open, public sex offender registry. We hold our privacy dear in Canada, but in cases as serious as these, privacy can interfere with a life or death situation.
The Conservatives proposed changes can make the federal sex offender registry more than the public relations tool it was when it was created. Taking it one step further and letting Canadians know who is listed will ensure any community about to play host to a registered sex offender will know exactly who and what they are dealing with.
