Ottawa, ON — The Hon. Rob Moore, Conservative Shadow Minister for Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and Pierre Paul-Hus, Quebec Political Lieutenant, released the following statement regarding the Liberals soft-on-crime Bill C-5 receiving Royal Assent:
“In a shameless move that lacks any compassion for victims of violent crimes, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repealed his own party’s mandatory minimum penalties that were brought in by Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. The Liberal government has decided to keep most Conservative mandatory minimum penalties on the books.
“Weakening sentences will not reduce crime, it will only embolden criminals.
“As of today, criminals charged with the following violent crimes will not face any mandatory jail time:
- Robbery with a gun
- Extortion with a gun
- Weapons trafficking
- Importing or exporting guns illegally
- Shooting a gun with intent to wound, maim, disfigure or endanger a life
- Using a gun in commission of a crime
- Possession of gun knowing its possession is unauthorized
- Possession of prohibited or restricted gun with ammunition
- Possession of weapon obtained by commission of offence
- Possession for purpose of weapons trafficking
- Drive-by shootings
“Additionally, the Liberals have now made house arrest available for violent criminals charged with serious crimes such as assault with a weapon, sexual assault, kidnapping, human trafficking, child abduction and assaulting a police officer and prison breach. The previous Conservative government banned house arrest for violent crimes in 2012, and the Supreme Court of Canada has recently reaffirmed the constitutionality of our decision to require jail sentences for serious crimes.
“Despite the fact that many of these crimes are often present in cases of domestic violence, the Liberal government has decided to amend the Criminal Code to benefit the perpetrators of these violent offences.
“With the Liberal government’s reluctance to hold violent criminals accountable and their refusal to acknowledge the fact that women and Indigenous Canadians are disproportionately victims of violent crime, Liberals will only continue to perpetuate the cycle of violence.
“This Liberal government has been chipping away at the integrity of our justice system for 7 years, and soft-on-crime Bill C-5 will have devastating impacts on victims and survivors of crime while putting at risk the safety of Canadian communities as a whole.
“No matter where you live, where your family is from or what your background is, all Canadians deserve to feel safe in their communities. Unfortunately, this Liberal government has abandoned their responsibility to protect public safety.”
