Copyright 2020 by Nelson Education Ltd. 1-1

Copyright © 2020 by Nelson Education Ltd. 1-1 Chapter 1 An Overview of the Criminal Justice System in Canada

CHAPTER OUTLINE

The Canadian Criminal Justice System The Major Components of the Canadian Criminal Justice System

What Is Crime and How Is It Regulated in Canada?What Is Crime?Social Control

Normative Framework of Our Criminal Justice System The Adversarial System Substantive and Procedural Justice The Rule of Law

The Major Ideologies of Canada’s What Is Criminal Justice?

Key Decision Points of the Criminal Justice Process Pretrial Criminal Procedure Trial Procedure Sentencing Incarceration

The Informal Organization of the Canadian Criminal Justice System Disparity Discrimination

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After completing this chapter, students should be able to:

• Outline the major components of the Canadian criminal justice system.• Explain the importance of social control and its relationship to how crime is regulated.• Differentiate among the various definitions of crime.• Summarize the major components of the normative system of the Canadian criminal justice system.• Differentiate among the models of criminal justice, focusing on the goals of the Canadian criminal justice system.• Summarize the key decision points of the formal criminal justice system.• Summarize the major components of the informal criminal justice system.• Describe the various types of discrimination in the criminal justice system.

SUMMARY

This chapter provides an overview of some of the essential themes and practices found within the Canadian criminal justice system. It includes a preliminary examination of how the system of (Criminal Justice in Canada, 8e Colin Goff) (Instructor Manual) 1 / 4

Instructor’s Guide to Accompany Goff, Criminal Justice in Canada, Eight Edition Copyright © 2020 by Nelson Education Ltd. 1-2 justice operates by discussing what the core components of “criminal justice” are. A series of questions about justice are posed, including the following: Who decides “what is crime”? What is criminal justice and what is its purpose? What is “justice” in the context of “criminal justice”?What is the best way for our criminal justice system to achieve justice? Who deserves justice?How should people receive justice? Who makes sure that the system of criminal justice delivers justice in a fair and impartial manner? What are the best policies that will allow a society to attain social control as well as to manage risk? What approach is best when it comes to protecting law-abiding citizens and ensuring that those who are charged and found guilty of a crime are treated fairly? What are the essential characteristics of our criminal justice system?How are cases processed through our criminal justice system?

THE CANADIAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

The police, courts, and corrections are the major elements of what most people think of as the criminal justice system. The police play the major role up to arrest—their role is to investigate crimes, arrest any suspects, and collect evidence. The courts are involved in adjudication, which determines whether or not any person charged is guilty of a crime as well as setting the type and amount of punishment for the guilty. Corrections, which comprises many different forms, takes over after a person is found guilty of a crime.

While we generally think of these elements as distinct, these simple categories don’t accurately present the realities of our criminal justice system. This is because the police work with other criminal justice officials such as probation officers or justice officials to investigate offenders who may be on probation or to develop official criminal justice policies. And pretrial court programs oftentimes use probation officers to supervise those individuals who have been charged but not been found guilty. Each of these elements has become the typical way of describing the criminal jus-tice system.

The Major Components of the Canadian Criminal Justice System In order to understand the structure of the Canadian criminal justice system, students need to first look at its three major agencies: the police, the courts, and corrections. The three major components of the Canadian Criminal Justice System are introduced to students in this sub-

section:

The Police • Three main levels of police agencies exist in Canada: municipal, provincial, and federal.• The most common type of police agency is found at the municipal level.• Most jurisdictions in Canada have some municipal police services; the exceptions are Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.• Each province is responsible for developing its own municipal and provincial policing services.• Provincial police services enforce all relevant laws in those parts of the province that are not under the control of a municipal police service.• Besides the RCMP, which operates at the provincial level in most provinces, there are currently three provincial police services: the Ontario Provincial Police, the Sûreté du Québec, and the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary. 2 / 4

Instructor’s Guide to Accompany Goff, Criminal Justice in Canada, Eight Edition Copyright © 2020 by Nelson Education Ltd. 1-3 • The federal government, through the RCMP, is responsible for enforcing laws created by Parliament.• The RCMP is organized under the authority of the RCMP Act and is part of the portfolio held by the Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.• The RCMP is involved in municipal and provincial policing across Canada.

The Courts • All provincial/territorial court systems in Canada except for Nunavut have three levels, though their formal titles differ by province.• The lower courts are called the provincial courts in most jurisdictions, although in Ontario they are referred to as the Court of Justice and in Quebec as the Court of Quebec.• Higher than the lower courts are the superior courts, usually known as the Court of Queen’s Bench or Supreme Court (Trial Division). In Ontario, these courts are called the Superior Court of Justice, and in Quebec, the Superior Court.• The highest level of criminal court in any province or territory is the appeal court.• The court with the greatest authority in any criminal matter is the Supreme Court of Canada.• The Nunavut Court is unique in Canada in that it consists of a single-level trial court.• Superior court judges hear all criminal, family, and civil matters. This system was introduced to simplify the structure of the courts, improve accessibility to the court, and reduce the travel of judges.• The provincial courts are the first courts most Canadians encounter when they are charged with a criminal offence. These courts are typically organized into specialized divisions that deal with different areas of the law. These courts deal with most criminal cases, including disorderly conduct, common assaults, property offences, traffic violations, municipal bylaws, and provincial offences.

Corrections • An accused, having been found guilty, may be sentenced to a term in the federal or provincial/territorial correctional system.• In Canada, the correctional system involves a vast array of facilities, agencies, and programs.• The responsibility for adult corrections is divided between the provincial/territorial governments and the federal government.• Provincial and territorial governments are responsible for any individual serving a term of incarceration under two years and for all non-custodial sentences (e.g., probation).• The federal government, through the Correctional Service of Canada, is responsible for any adult sentenced to a prison term of two years or more.• A person sentenced to a term of two years or more who decides to appeal the conviction or sentence will first be incarcerated in a provincial facility.• Those who waive the right to an appeal are sent directly to a federal institution to start serving the sentence.

WHAT IS CRIME AND HOW IS IT REGULATED IN CANADA?

The very concept of “justice” is challenging as it raises questions about how it should be received and delivered. The way in which we conceive of justice in our society is important, as how we interpret it raises questions about the best way to approach social control. Even though 3 / 4

Instructor’s Guide to Accompany Goff, Criminal Justice in Canada, Eight Edition Copyright © 2020 by Nelson Education Ltd. 1-4 we may agree on how we interpret justice, differing definitions of crime have emerged. As a result, we can consider a variety of ways to be the best approach to study and understand crime in our society. Many people prefer the “black letter” definition because it focuses on those convicted in a court of criminal law; others prefer to identify more with the social constructionist approach, as they feel by studying the actions of the various agencies within our criminal justice system we gain a better understanding of crime in our society. The legal response to certain types of behaviours (e.g., assisted suicide) can change over time, from one in which there is a blanket prohibition to one in which there are now legal options. So, what are the essential elements we have developed in the hopes our criminal justice system operates as a just system? This question is the subject of this section.

What Is Crime ?For students to understand the Canadian criminal justice system, they need to address the question, “What is crime and how is it regulated?” To answer this question, they need to look first at the meaning of social control, and then at some of the different ways to define crime. Just as it is important for students to consider the broader aspects of our system of criminal justice, it is important for them to recognize that this system is part of social control and that the type of behaviours we wish to control can vary over time. In addition, it is important for students to understand that there are different definitions of crime, all of which have impact upon the definition of what type of behaviour considered to be criminal and subsequently processed through our criminal justice system.

Two common definitions of crime are introduced to students in this section:

1) The violation of a criminal law: an act can be called a crime only when it violates the existing legal code of the jurisdiction in which it occurs.2) The determination of guilt in a criminal court: sometimes referred to as the “black letter” approach—stipulates that no act can be considered criminal until a duly appointed representative of the criminal court (e.g., a judge or a jury) has established the guilt of an offender.

The two definitions have two important consequences:

1) Without the criminal law there would be no crime (i.e., no behaviour can be considered criminal “unless a formal action exists to prohibit it”).2) No behaviour or individual “can be considered criminal until formally decided upon by the criminal justice system.”

Students will also explore several criticisms that have been directed toward the use of these two definitions in determining crime.

Three definitions are also introduced to students in this section :

1) Legalistic definitions of crime—a brief introduction to the two main legal definitions of crime and some of the criticisms of them.2) Crime as violation of moral codes—the importance of looking at other criteria to define a crime, most notably the “modified legalistic” approach pioneered by Edwin Sutherland in his work on corporate crime. The importance of the two abstract criteria that he used in

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