CCLA Welcomes Supreme Court of Canada Decision upholding prisoners’ rights

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association welcomes the Supreme Court of Canada decision in John Howard Society Saskatchewan v Saskatchewan.  This decision affirms that robust procedural protections are required in prisons disciplinary hearings.

This case arises from a constitutional challenge brought by the John Howard Society of Saskatchewan regarding the low standard of proof in prison disciplinary hearings in the province of Saskatchewan.

The CCLA intervened in this case to ensure that inmates charged with disciplinary offences have access to fair and impartial proceedings.  We argued that sanctions for disciplinary offences have a significant impact on the rights of inmates and that guilt should not be determined on the basis of the lower, civil burden of proof.

The Court agreed with our arguments that inmates accused of disciplinary offences must benefit from the presumption of innocence and that this requires imposing the higher, criminal standard of proof. The Court declared that the higher threshold of beyond a reasonable doubt is required when an inmate is charged with an offence punishable by segregation or loss of earned remission.

Notably, the court also recognized that that segregation, or solitary confinement, is a distinct form of imprisonment, which triggers the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This monumental decision by the Court is an important victory for the rights of inmates in provincial facilities throughout Canada.

The CCLA is grateful to be represented pro bono on this intervention by Alexa Biscaro and Erika Anschuetz of Norton Rose Fulbright LLP.

Read the summary of the decision here.