CITY HALL
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR VANCOUVER
22 July 1997
MEMO TO: Members of Council
FROM: Mayor Philip W. Owen
RE: FCM Resolutions
Crime and criminal activity present perhaps the single greatest
challenge to the integrity of our communities. Organized crime, drug
traffickers, and gangs are sophisticated and ruthless. Pervasive
property crimes - theft of automobiles, theft from autos, breaking and
entering - are part of the experience of most members of our community.
To many residents, our justice system appears impotent in the face of
this activity. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms has tilted the
balance in favour of individual rights over community rights. Our
legislative base for enforcement against crime does not provide the
tools our police departments need, and the Courts are constrained or
choose not to apply sanctions that the community believes are
appropriate.
The Charter precludes introduction of evidence in court proceedings
which is obtained in a manner which infringes the Charter if the
admission of it in the proceedings would bring the administration of
justice into disrepute . Courts are precluded from drawing any
inference from the failure of an accused person to testify. The
protection against unreasonable search and seizure has been interpreted
to limit the grounds for police action to a significant degree. The
protection against self-incrimination has reduced the number of charges
that can be prosecuted successfully and extended the duration of a
prosecution for those that can.
At the same time, the Charter protects the life, liberty, and security
of the person. It protects freedom of association and expression. But
these rights are removed from law abiding members of our community by
the prevalence of crime. Many people avoid areas of the City to avoid
visible evidence of drug activity and prostitution. Some elderly people
and women avoid going out at night, or to certain areas of the City,
because they fear criminal activity.
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The Charter is an important document, and the protections it provides to
individuals are essential, but the balance is wrong. The collective
rights of our community and our law abiding citizens must be given
greater weight relative to the rights of individuals accused of crime.
Our citizens do not believe the justice system is effective - in fact,
the administration of justice is now in disrepute.
The balance is not just a legal question, it is a question of community
values. And, it is a difficult issue. The courts struggle with the
balance, and to assist them we need to help clarify our values. I am
proposing that we submit two resolutions to FCM in this regard. Both
resolutions are intended to demonstrate the seriousness of this issue
for our community, and to point to possible solutions.
The first resolution (a) is directed to the interpretation of the
Charter, and advises the judiciary of our view of the direction the
courts should move in balancing the rights of individuals and the
community. The second (b) is directed to the existing legislative base
for enforcement against crime, and urges that the Minister of Justice
take steps to implement legislation which will provide the tools we
require, including utilization of the five year exemption from specific
Charter provisions offered by section 33 of the Charter.
I RECOMMEND that Council endorse these motions and forward them to FCM.
Philip W. Owen,
MAYOR
(A)
INTERPRETATION OF THE CHARTER
WHEREAS the presence of organized and individual criminal activity
threatens the sense of security of our communities; and
WHEREAS the application of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms has
reduced the effectiveness of our police agencies and the justice system
to control crime, to the detriment of our communities; and
WHEREAS our inability to enforce effectively against criminal activity
has resulted in a loss of confidence in the justice system;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Federation of Canadian Municipalities
request the Minister of Justice introduce legislation to increase the
effectiveness of law enforcement, utilizing where necessary section 33
of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to limit in a selective fashion
the application of the Charter to correspond more closely with the
values of our communities and our law abiding citizens.
(b)
ENFORCEMENT AGAINST CRIME
WHEREAS communities where people feel secure, are able to come and go at
will, and have faith in their institutions to protect them are central
to our vision of Canada; and
WHEREAS the visible presence of criminal activity and its direct and
indirect impacts on the people of our communities are challenging their
security, their freedom to live their lives free from the impact of
criminal behaviour, and their freedom to come and go at will, such that
the fabric of the community is threatened and the administration of
justice is in disrepute in the community; and
WHEREAS the balance between the rights of individuals and the rights of
the larger community is established in the Canadian Charter of Rights
and Freedoms; and
WHEREAS the interpretation and application of the Charter of Rights and
Freedoms is vested in the Judiciary;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Federation of Canadian Municipalities
respectfully advise the Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, the
Federal Court, and the Provincial Courts that the communities of Canada
are threatened by criminal activity, and request that the interests of
the community and its law abiding members receive greater weight in
their deliberations.