403 search results for
Policing and the criminal justice system
Recommendation 12:
That the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions conduct an evidence informed and outcomes-based review of extended leave for children and youth who are detained under the Mental Health Act to:
- assess the effectiveness of extended leave as a mental health intervention for children and youth, and
- if extended leave is determined to be effective, review the need for additional legislative or regulatory criteria and oversight mechanisms, and review the extent to which children and youth are aware of and exercise their rights on extended leave.
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Recommendation 14:
That the Mental Health Review Board pilot a new Review Board hearing process for children and youth that centres the young person and is trauma-informed and culturally attuned after actively engaging and consulting with health authorities, First Nations, Métis Nation and urban Indigenous communities and leadership and other appropriate bodies. Pilot to be operational by Oct. 1, 2022.
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- Access to justice ,
- Corrections ,
- Culture and language ,
- Decolonization and Indigenous rights ,
- Health ,
- Health, wellness and services ,
- Human rights system ,
- Indigenous children and youth in care ,
- Mental health and detention ,
- Policing and the criminal justice system ,
- Poverty and economic inequality ,
- Public services
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Recommendation 5:
That the Attorney General in partnership with the Ministries of Health and Mental Health and Addictions, ensure that an independent body is notified every time a child or youth is detained under the Mental Health Act and that this body is mandated to provide rights advice and advocacy to children and youth. Independent body to be in place by Dec. 1, 2021.
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Recommendation 1:
Take immediate action to address systemic discrimination in policing by ending all street checks in Vancouver and BC. Street checks are harmful and discriminatory for Indigenous, Black, and low-income communities.
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Recommendation 18:
Systemic neighbourhood environmental issues
To address safety concerns expressed by interviewees, there are several larger structural solutions such as increasing the number of safe and affordable housing units, access to health-focused treatment, and equitable employment opportunities. One short-term measure could be to install lighting on streets and in alleyways to help people feel safe during evenings and at night.
In the interim, reducing criminalization and stigmatization of community members would alleviate further social divides. Instead, we recommend an approach that allows them to thrive that takes an inclusive approach to housing, employment, social security, and access (services, food, other), which would require cooperative action by all levels of government and stakeholders.
Ultimately, a systems change approach would need to be applied to adequately address the root causes of these issues. As noted in the Resilient Vancouver Phase One Engagement Report (2018), many of these issues are interrelated and solutions need to involve multiple city departments, all levels of government, and other stakeholders.
To address safety concerns expressed by interviewees, there are several larger structural solutions such as increasing the number of safe and affordable housing units, access to health-focused treatment, and equitable employment opportunities. One short-term measure could be to install lighting on streets and in alleyways to help people feel safe during evenings and at night.
In the interim, reducing criminalization and stigmatization of community members would alleviate further social divides. Instead, we recommend an approach that allows them to thrive that takes an inclusive approach to housing, employment, social security, and access (services, food, other), which would require cooperative action by all levels of government and stakeholders.
Ultimately, a systems change approach would need to be applied to adequately address the root causes of these issues. As noted in the Resilient Vancouver Phase One Engagement Report (2018), many of these issues are interrelated and solutions need to involve multiple city departments, all levels of government, and other stakeholders.
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Category and theme:
- Accessibility ,
- Accessible services and technology ,
- Alternative solutions ,
- Classism ,
- Discrimination and hate ,
- Food insecurity ,
- Health ,
- Housing and homelessness ,
- Income insecurity and benefits ,
- Mental health and detention ,
- Policing and the criminal justice system ,
- Poverty ,
- Poverty and economic inequality ,
- Public services ,
- Racism ,
- Substance use
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Recommendation 10:
Strengthen the legal duty of the Ministry to consider less disruptive measures by:
- Adding legislative language in the CFCSA that explicitly directs the Ministry to actively and diligently pursue and implement less disruptive measures on an ongoing basis;
- Including a non-exhaustive list of less disruptive measures that the Ministry must consider on an ongoing basis including an order of preference of placements akin to that set out in section 16 of Bill C-92;
- Adding legislative language in the CFCSA that directs the Ministry to establish in court that social workers have made active efforts that proved unsuccessful to return the child to their family;
- Where parents and Nations have identified less disruptive measures, the CFCSA should direct the Ministry to provide prompt, clear, and written reasons for rejecting these less disruptive measures.
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Category and theme:
- Access to justice ,
- Accessibility ,
- Classism ,
- Courts ,
- Decolonization and Indigenous rights ,
- Disability and parenting ,
- Discrimination and hate ,
- Health, wellness and services ,
- Human rights system ,
- Indigenous children and youth in care ,
- International human rights ,
- Policing and the criminal justice system ,
- Poverty and economic inequality ,
- Public services ,
- Racism
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Recommendation 171:
Start all Indigenous women prisoners at a minimum-security level and remove the requirement to automatically incarcerate Indigenous women in a maximum security facility for the first two years of a murder sentence.
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Recommendation 5:
The Canadian legal system also requires specialised training of professionals working with children, including mental health professionals, lawyers, and judges (Bala & Birnbaum, 2019; Collins, 2019; Paetsch et al., 2018). This is particularly important for legal professionals working on cases involving parental alienation and/or family violence (Elrod, 2016; Martinson & Jackson, 2016). These types of cases require judges and mental health professionals who are experienced in discovering and addressing problems in the family, as there can be multiple reasons for a child refusing contact with a parent or guardian, including family violence that can continue to put the child at risk if left unaddressed in custody and access decisions (Elrod, 2016; Martinson & Tempesta, 2018).
Specific recommendations for children’s legal counsel include: ensuring democratic communication, in which lawyers and child both share information about themselves to build trust in preparation for proceedings; having lawyers inform children about the court process and what it means to have a lawyer represent them; having lawyers pose questions to children to better recognize how children understand the court process; and getting lawyers to emphasize flexibility in the child’s options to share their views, not share them at all or change their instructions to the lawyer (Bala & Birnbaum, 2019; Koshan, 2020; Horsfall, 2013; Paetsch et al., 2018). Those working at family courts should receive specialised training on family violence and high-risk cases, which can have a substantial impact on children’s rights (Koshan, 2020; Martinson & Raven, 2020a). From a scholastic perspective, much more research is needed to understand which of the many strategies implemented across Canada (and the world) might be most helpful to children’s legal participation (Birnbaum & Saini, 2012). This requires ongoing cooperation and collaboration between the legal and academic communities, to guarantee specialised and sensitised approaches to this topic.
Specific recommendations for children’s legal counsel include: ensuring democratic communication, in which lawyers and child both share information about themselves to build trust in preparation for proceedings; having lawyers inform children about the court process and what it means to have a lawyer represent them; having lawyers pose questions to children to better recognize how children understand the court process; and getting lawyers to emphasize flexibility in the child’s options to share their views, not share them at all or change their instructions to the lawyer (Bala & Birnbaum, 2019; Koshan, 2020; Horsfall, 2013; Paetsch et al., 2018). Those working at family courts should receive specialised training on family violence and high-risk cases, which can have a substantial impact on children’s rights (Koshan, 2020; Martinson & Raven, 2020a). From a scholastic perspective, much more research is needed to understand which of the many strategies implemented across Canada (and the world) might be most helpful to children’s legal participation (Birnbaum & Saini, 2012). This requires ongoing cooperation and collaboration between the legal and academic communities, to guarantee specialised and sensitised approaches to this topic.
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Category and theme:
- Access to justice ,
- Accessibility ,
- Accessible services and technology ,
- Ageism ,
- Courts ,
- Decolonization and Indigenous rights ,
- Discrimination and hate ,
- Human rights system ,
- Indigenous children and youth in care ,
- International human rights ,
- Policing and the criminal justice system ,
- Poverty and economic inequality ,
- Public services
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Recommendation 68:
Significantly increase the number of national-level use of force reviews. At the very least, CSC national should review all uses of force involving prisoners with mental health disabilities, all uses of force at treatment centres, all uses of ERTs and all cases involving allegations of misconduct (including but not limited to excessive force) or failure to follow policy.
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Recommendation 15:
Select officers who excel at conflict resolution and empathy to work as Mental Health Liaison Officers and on therapeutic units, and involve the Provincial Health Services Authority in their training.
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