Bill Passed in Canada re: Animal Cruelty - letter from my MP
April 10, 2008
Candace
AB.
Dear Ms. Carnie:
Thank you for your correspondence of March 26th.
On April 9, 2008, the House of Commons passed Bill S-203, a private member’s bill amending the Criminal Code to combat animal cruelty. The Bill was prepared and originally introduced in the Senate by John G. Bryden, Liberal Senator from New Brunswick. It has now passed both Houses of Parliament, and will come into force as soon as it receives Royal Assent.
The Bill significantly increases the penalties that may be ordered by a court in animal cruelty cases, finally bringing them into line with Canadians’ expectations. Until Bill S-203, animal cruelty cases could only be prosecuted on summary conviction, with maximum penalties of a fine up to $2,000 and/or 6 months imprisonment. There was one exception related to cases of killing, poisoning or injuring cattle, for which higher penalties were possible.
There was broad consensus that the penalties for animal cruelty offences were not adequate. They did not reflect the seriousness with which Canadians today view these crimes, and they did not present an effective deterrent.
Bill S-203 amends the Criminal Code to make all animal cruelty offences “hybrid” offences, permitting the prosecutor to choose, depending on the seriousness of the case, whether to proceed by way of indictment or summary conviction.
For the most serious offences – those that are committed intentionally or recklessly, and also for the offence of causing pain, suffering or injury by failing to exercise reasonable care – the Bill now allows a court to sentence an offender to up to 5 years imprisonment on indictment. Where the prosecutor elects to proceed on summary conviction, the court may sentence the offender to up to 18 months in prison and/or a fine up to $10,000.
For other animal cruelty offences, the Bill increases the maximum penalty on indictment to two years imprisonment. On summary conviction the maximum fine would be increased from $2,000 to $5,000, with possible maximum imprisonment of 6 months.
The Bill also expands a court’s power to make orders prohibiting offenders from owning or keeping animals. Until now, courts could only impose such prohibition orders for a maximum of 2 years. This has been found to be inadequate to prevent future offences. Bill S-203 removes that 2-year limitation, allowing a court, in appropriate cases, to issue a prohibition order for any period it considers appropriate. However, in the event of a second or subsequent offence, any prohibition order must be for a minimum of five years.
The Bill also includes a new power expressly authorizing courts to make restitution orders. Courts will now be able to order convicted offenders to pay reasonable compensation to an animal welfare agency or an individual who took care of an animal as a result of the offence committed.
Efforts to make these changes to Canada’s laws against animal cruelty have been on-going for almost a decade. There was near-universal agreement that these new penalties were appropriate and necessary. However, there was disagreement over other proposed changes to the law that have been brought forward in years past, with concerns expressed by some that the proposals went too far and could impede activities such as medical research and farming.
“I introduced this Bill to try to break the impasse,” explained Senator Bryden. “Everyone agreed that the existing penalties were too low. But this was a classic case where people tried to do too much at once, and as a result, nothing was achieved. With this bill we now, finally, have appropriate penalties available for the courts to use when faced with terrible crimes against animals. And of course, nothing in this bill prevents those who want to create a more ambitious and comprehensive regime from pursuing their goals. In the meantime, the issue on which all Canadians agree - namely that the existing penalties are inadequate - has been addressed by Bill S-203.”
The Bill does not create any new offences. “A number of people were concerned that wild or stray animals are not protected under the existing Criminal Code, and they wanted amendments to fix that,” said Bryden. “But what emerged during the study of this bill is that the current Criminal Code does protect wild and stray animals – the problem was, the provisions have never been used, probably because the penalties were so low.”
The goals of Bill S-203 are modest, namely to increase the penalties and provide enhanced sentencing options for courts in addressing those convicted of crimes involving cruelty to animals. However, nothing else has been amended. The existing defences will continue to apply. The body of case law that has developed over the years interpreting the provisions will continue to apply. However, enforcement officers, prosecutors and the courts will now have access to penalties that are significant, appropriate to the crime, and will serve as a substantial deterrent to those who would commit acts of cruelty to animals.
The Bill passed the Senate with broad, cross-party support on November 27, 2007. It was sponsored in the House of Commons by the Honourable Charles Hubbard, M.P. (Miramichi). The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, M.P. (Beauséjour), Liberal Justice critic, quarterbacked its passage through the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. In the House of Commons as in the Senate, the Bill received cross-party support.
Again, thank you for taking the time to write.
Sincerely,
Myron Thompson, M.P.
Wild Rose
