e-2126 (Sentences in the Criminal Code)

Petition to the House of Commons in Parliament assembled

• When a murderer is convicted of abduction and sexual assault and murder of a person, the convicted individual is eligible for parole after serving only 25 years;
• The victims’ families are re-traumatized by reliving the horror of their loved one’s death at the parole hearing, even though these criminals are almost never granted parole;
• Private Members' Bill C-266 will empower the courts, at the time of sentencing, with the ability to set the parole ineligibility period up to 40 years for those convicted of abduction and sexual assault and murder;
• In Bill C-266, the number of years one could be ineligible for parole is not a mandatory minimum, but is based on the discretion of the presiding judge or jury, who can set a parole ineligibility period anywhere between 25 and 40 years; and
• The justice system needs to put the rights of victims’ families first in order to be just, compassionate and fair.