Toughen criminal laws in cases of domestic assault, with the goal of keeping survivors and children safe.
What success looks like
Greater protections for complainants and survivors of sexual assault and domestic assault.
Government's narrative on progress
On March 29, 2018, the government tabled legislation to improve efficiencies in the criminal justice system and reduce court delays. This legislation includes reforms to strengthen responses to intimate partner violence (IPV). These reforms, currently before the Senate, would: • impose a reverse onus at bail for accused charged with an IPV offence if they have a prior conviction for violence against an intimate partner; • require courts to consider whether an accused is charged with an IPV offence when determining whether to release on bail or detain the accused; • clarify that strangulation, choking and suffocation is an elevated form of assault; • define “intimate partner” for all *Criminal Code* purposes and clarify that it includes current or former spouse, common-law partner and dating partner; • clarify that the current sentencing provisions, which treat abuse against a spouse or common law partner as an aggravating factor, apply to both current and former spouses/common law partners and dating partners; and, • allow for the possibility of seeking a higher maximum penalty in cases involving a repeat IPV offender. On December 13, 2018, government legislation came into force that clarified and strengthened the sexual assault provisions in the *Criminal Code*. The legislation clarifies that an unconscious person, or a person who is otherwise incapacitated, is incapable of consenting; clarifies the defence of mistaken belief to indicate that it cannot be relied upon if there is no evidence upon which the belief was founded; clarifies rape shield provisions to explicitly include communications of a sexual nature or communications for a sexual purpose, so these types of communications cannot be used to suggest that the complainant was more likely to have consented or is less worthy of belief; provides that a complainant has a right to legal representation in rape shield proceedings; and creates a regime to determine whether an accused can introduce a complainant's private records at trial that are in their possession.
Note: this is the government's own description, not an independent assessment.