How the Canadian sentencing system impacts policy reform: An examination of the Harper era

Abstract

During the Harper era (2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015), the Canadian government actively pursued criminal justice policy reform. Many of its efforts focused on reforming the Canadian sentencing regime by increasing the severity of penalties, including expanding mandatory minimums. Yet, Canada's rate of incarceration remains stable. The inconsistency between the considerable focus on sentencing policy by the Harper government and the lack of significant change in incarceration rates merits further scrutiny. This contrast between policy effort and policy impact also presents an opportunity to examine how the context of criminal justice policy in Canada influences the nature of policy reform. Taking up this focus, this article articulates the context of Canadian criminal justice policy and considers how this context shapes the policymaking process and policy reform. | INTRODUCTIONWhen the public assesses the performance of the criminal justice system, the length and severity of sentences for offenders are front of mind (Roberts et al., 2007;Steiger, 1998). The public routinely evaluates sentences imposed by judges as reported by the media and considers whether the severity of the sanction is just. Sentences that are perceived to be too lenient will draw criticism and will lead to calls for more punitive sentencing and less judicial discretion. Therefore, it is not surprising that governments motivated by a desire to appear tough on crime will focus their attention on sentencing policy (Beckett et al., 2018). In Canada, this certainly was the case for the recent Conservative government, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, which held power from 2006 to 2015. The Harper government devoted a substantial portion of its legislative efforts to criminal justice policy in general and sentencing policy in particular. Many of the measures adopted by the Harper government drew criticism from different members of the criminal justice policy community, as many were concerned that the focus on severity in sentencing would increase the rate of incarceration and increase spending on criminal justice.

Reconsidering Penal Stability in Canada Through a New Sentencing Severity Index

“…but it can also be done upstream by surveying how the legal community perceives a given change in legislation. The Harper reforms have shown us that if policies are negatively perceived by the legal community, they will be challenged from a constitutional point of view (see, e.g., the laws challenged in the Supreme Court of Canada discussed by Puddister [2021]) or circumvented through parallel practices (Leclerc et al, 2020). Analyzing the effects of policies on practice is a complex art, which requires both a general look at how policies modify the legal landscape (which the ASSI allows), but also a more targeted incursion into the concrete application.…”