Thank you very much.

Boozhoo. Tanisi. Aaniin.

I want to thank previous speakers, and also to thank the House of Commons committee on justice and human rights for allowing us to participate in this very, very important presentation.

My name is Cameron Alexis. I am the regional chief for Treaty 6, 7, and 8 in Alberta, and I lead the work on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations executive in the area of justice. I was an RCMP officer for 23 years.

I am honoured to speak to you today about this private member's bill, Bill C-583, an act to amend the Criminal Code (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder).

The Assembly of First Nations has always stressed the importance of flexibility in sentencing. First nations are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. While our population is approximately 4% of the general population, we make up almost a quarter of the present criminal justice system population and over 50% in the western provinces. This current situation is the result of many factors that this committee is well aware of, including colonization, disposition of lands and culture, the intergenerational impacts of residential schools, and the failure of the child welfare system, to name a few.

Currently, paragraph 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code requires that the particular situation of aboriginal offenders be considered at sentencing and requires that a report outlining the individual's background—also known as the Gladue report, from British Columbia—be provided at pre-sentencing.

Bill C-583 would add a definition of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, or FASD, to the Criminal Code, as well as other provisions for FASD assessment, evidence provisions, and sentencing considerations for accused with FASD. Adding these new provisions to the Criminal Code would allow judges to identify and consider the effects of FASD in the sentencing of the accused.

Some first nation communities have experienced disproportionately high rates of FASD, and the proposed amendments could provide additional context to sentencing and act as a supportive companion to the statement of purposes and principles of sentencing set out in section 718 of the Criminal Code.

We are concerned that recent amendments to Criminal Code requiring mandatory minimum sentences remove from sentencing judges the discretion to appropriately and effectively determine which sentence can best balance all the fundamental objectives of sentencing. Therefore, to achieve its objectives, the bill would require provisions making the mandatory minimum sentencing provisions subject to the proposed provisions of Bill C-583. Otherwise, the bill would fail to provide judges the required discretion to provide creative sentencing, better reflecting the situation and the capacity limitations of accused persons with FASD.

The current criminal justice system has profoundly failed first nations. It has done so in failing to respect cultural differences, failing to address the system's biases against our people, and denying them an effective voice in the development and delivery of service. The introduction of mandatory minimum sentences furthers this fundamental miscarriage of justice and the failure to respect and uphold aboriginal treaty rights and human rights.

In effect, the justice system is investing in the present system instead of preventative measures and proper supports and services for those suspected of and/or diagnosed with FASD, rights including court-ordered FASD assessments as long as the client is not inhibited by lack of funds for costly diagnoses and also that the courts ensure clients are provided with proper supports that respect their rights and those of their biological mothers. This bill cannot have the needed impact while the unique considerations of first nations, including those with FASD, are subject to non-discretionary sentencing conditions.

We have seen the damaging effects of colonization and the residential school system in our communities. The current criminal justice system has consistently and profoundly failed first nations. Without the proper modifications of this bill, it will ensure that this unfortunate legacy continues.

In closing I just want to add a few quick things.

I want to thank all of you for your valuable interventions. I really thank the speakers before me. I also want to thank Ryan Leef from the Yukon for stepping up on this.

As first nations, we continue to struggle with this, and I know from sentencing circles and restorative justice initiatives that we, by and large, cannot factor in FASD. Our people continue to suffer and correction is not the answer. We need prevention.

I deal with people in my own family and in my own community with this almost on an everyday basis. You have to repeat yourself more than several times to even get your message across. We need a different mechanism, and I support the amendment to this bill.

Respectfully, thank you, members of the committee.

Ish nish. Thank you.

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