NCJ Number
108180
Editor(s)
C L Boydell,
I A Connidis
Date Published
1982
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article outlines the Canadian Committee on Corrections' (CCC) statements regarding the proper scope and functioning of the criminal and correctional processes.
Abstract
The CCC states that criminal justice should protect everyone, including offenders, from seriously harmful and dangerous conduct; that it should interfere with individual freedom as little as necessary; that the innocent must be properly protected throughout the criminal justice process; and that conduct should not be defined as criminal unless it seriously threatens society and cannot be dealt with through other social or legal means. The family or church may deal with some problems more effectively than isolated lessons of criminal law. The CCC further states that laws shall not cause social or personal damage greater than they were intended to prevent. The criminal justice process may protect society only through criminal sanctions, correctional measures designed to socially rehabilitate individuals, and control over offenders in varying degrees. The CCC advocates offender rehabilitation as the best long-term protection for society because it reduces the risk of a continuing criminal career. The law enforcement, judicial, and correctional processes should have consistent philosophies and aims and should form an interrelated sequence. Discretion in criminal law application should be allowed at arrest, prosecution, conviction, sentencing, and corrections. The criminal and correctional processes must have public and offender support according to prevailing concepts of justice and fairness. Examination of quasi-criminal provincial laws, such as those involving public drunkenness, vagrancy, and contraception, is strongly recommended. 3 footnotes.