Ottawa gives $7.48M for sex offender reintegration program

5-8-17 Canada:

Circles of Support and Accountability, which helps reintegrate sexual offenders after they're released from jail, will receive $7.48M from Public Safety Canada.

A Canadian initiative that helps reintegrate convicted sexual offenders back into society — an approach that cuts recidivism rates by anywhere from 67 to 92 per cent — has been granted $7.48 million in funding by the federal government.

Circles of Support and Accountability, which has 14 sites across the country, will received the money over five years to fund its National Capacity Project, Public Safety Canada said in a press release Friday.

The previous Conservative government had scrapped funding for all but one CoSA site in 2015, leaving the rest to scramble for other sources of income.

“Re-establishing funding for this important Canadian-made program demonstrates our commitment to evidence-based criminal justice policy,” Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Ralph Goodale said in the release.

“This project will help reduce victimization and keep our communities safe by holding ex-offenders accountable for their actions and giving them the support they need to become responsible and productive members of society.” ..Continued.. by Jackie HongStaff Reporter

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Vigilante pedophile hunters slammed by police

2-20-17 Canada:

Fame hungry’ Canadian group of vigilante pedophile hunters is slammed for naming and shaming innocent men and interfering with police work

A group of vigilante pedophile hunters in Canada has been slammed for interfering with police work and labeling innocent citizens as sexual predators.

Creep Catchers, which has a handful of chapters across the country, has its members pose as underage boys and girls online and arrange meetings with would-be predators.

They film the encounters to share online and also post screenshots of the conversations leading up to the meetings to name and shame the adults involved.

But police say the network of vigilantes, whose most prominent members have criminal records themselves, is doing more harm than good.

They say the meetings can drive predators they are on the verge of arresting underground and that the vigilantes are only seeking to make money and find fame.

‘What they’re doing is absolutely not protecting children in any way,’ Insp. Dave Dubnyk of Alberta’s Integrated Child Exploitation unit told

In one case in Alberta, the group confronted a pedophile who police were preparing to arrest. He disappeared after their meeting and is accused of molesting a baby and a toddler afterwards.

‘There’s nothing good coming from this, nothing good at all, except for an emotional response that’s very acute and very short lived,’ Staff Sergeant Stephen Camp of the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team’s Integrated Child Exploitation Unit told of the group.

Another allegation is that it wrongly targets people who haven’t committed any form of child abuse.

The parents of a 22-year-old who was profiled by the group for inviting a 15-year-old boy over to his house say the group made his life torturous.

He said the meeting was innocent and that the boy told him he needed support coming out as gay.

In messages beforehand, he said the boy could go to his house ‘as friends’ and that they mustn’t ‘fool around’ but he was shamed by the group.

In a video of the confrontation, he wept: ‘I’m not a creep. I’m not a molester. I’m nothing.’ The man’s father said he had been used as ‘cheap entertainment’.

Last year another man lashed out at the group after being shown in one of its videos. He said he believed the girl he was meeting was 18.

In Canada it is not illegal for an adult to arrange to meet a child if they show no intent to kidnap or sexually abuse them.

Some of Creep Catcher’s most prolific members have criminal records of their own and one has been arrested for harassment since joining the anti-pedophile crusade.

Katelynn McKnight, 27, took her life in September last year after the group accused her of soliciting sex from a 14-year-old

Karl Young has 25 separate convictions for offenses in New Brunswick, reported.

The newspaper also claimed that Dawson Raymond, who describes himself as ‘the original creep catcher’, has a breaking and entering conviction. Raymond vehemently denies the allegation.

He earlier told Vice he’d created a ‘movement’ which others had hopped on to.

Creep Catchers has been blamed for the suicide of a transgender woman who killed herself after being targeted by the group.

Katelynn McKnight, 27, took her life in September last year after the group accused her of soliciting sex from a 14-year-old.

The group was also condemned for filming a disabled man with cerebral palsy and sharing his identity online. The man said he’d been told by the ‘girl’ that she was in fact a 20-year-old escort.

He arrived to their meeting in a mobility scooter where he questioned why he’d been entrapped. At the time Creep Catchers defended the snare, telling CTV news: ‘Mental disability or not, it needs to be out there.’ ..Source.. by Newswire

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Edmonton judge rules national sex offender registry is unconstitutional

The Canadian Charter (likened to the US Constitution) has more rights, hence declaration of unconstitutionality! (See also: Zim sex offender challenges lifetime registration) see also: Should Canada's sex offender registry be open to the public?

10-27-16 Canada:

An Edmonton judge has ruled that the national sex offender registry is unconstitutional as it is “over broad and grossly disproportionate” and violates people of their charter rights.

In a recently released decision involving the case of an Edmonton man convicted of two sexual assaults, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Andrea Moen found the Sex Offender Information Registration Act removed judicial discretion to refuse to place offenders who present no risk of reoffending on the registry.

“In my view, the mandatory registration for all sex offenders upon conviction of two or more offences, without regard to the seriousness of the offences or the offender’s propensity to reoffend is over broad,” said Moen, noting the goal of the legislation is to help police investigate past crimes and prevent new ones.

“In my view, including offenders on the registry who have little to no chance of reoffending bears no relation to protecting the public. Subjecting all offenders, regardless of their future risk, to onerous reporting requirements, random compliance checks by the police and internal stigma, goes further than what is necessary to accomplish the goal of protecting the public, and is therefore over broad,” said Moen.

The judge’s decision, which would not be binding on courts across the country, but could be persuasive, is not final yet. She has given the Crown, which opposed the sex offender’s application, until Nov. 30 to return to court with further charter arguments or a possible legal remedy in the case.

On June 26, 2015, Eugen Ndhlovu, 25, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault and was sentenced to six months in jail followed by three-years probation. He would also have been placed on the national sex offender registry for life; however, he challenged the constitutionality of the mandatory lifetime registration.

Court heard that on March 12, 2011, Ndhlovu was invited by a woman, who can’t be identified under a court-ordered publication ban, to attend a party billed on Facebook as a highly sexualized Jersey Shore event that was to have a stripper pole available.

Ndhlovu, who was born and raised in Zimbabwe, had declined because he was working the next day, but the woman insisted on his attendance, arranged a ride for him, and told him he could stay overnight and get a ride to work the next morning.

The pair and a mutual friend, who also can’t be identified, began drinking at the home that evening and, as the night progressed, the two women each reported instances where Ndhlovu sexually touched them without their consent. ..Continued..

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CBSA Stop More than 150 US Sex Offenders from Entering their Country

UPDATE: Canada stopped 59 U.S. sex offenders from crossing the border in 2014

1-5-2015 Canada:

Canadian Border Services Agents say they stopped more than 150 US sex offenders from entering their country.

A sweeping capture that was due, in part, to a partnership with united states customs.

In Montreal, Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney made the announcement at Trudeau International Airport.

Blaney also said the "Wanted by CBSA" program's success has been two-fold.

First, Canadian citizens have identified and tracked suspected offenders inside the country, while the us partnership has helped stopped known offenders at the border.

Steven Blaney, Canada's Public Safety Minister says, "it's thanks to the partnership we have with custom and border protection, a us agency, more than 150 denials of entry into Canada of us sex offenders at our border has been achieved."

The "Wanted by the CBSA" program was launched in 2011 as a tool to help border services officers locate criminals with outstanding deportation orders. ..Source.. by NBC News

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Police don’t need warrants to search cellphones in arrests, top Canadian court rules

For those who cross the border into Canada, be mindful of this...should you get stopped.

12-11-2014 Canada:

Police do not need a search warrant before looking at the contents of a suspect’s cellphone as part of an arrest, as long as they meet certain conditions, including taking detailed notes on how they searched and what they found, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled on Thursday.

A court that has repeatedly objected to the Conservative government’s tough crime laws spoke up this time for police powers and public safety, taking a sharply different approach than the United States Supreme Court, which last summer told police they need a warrant to search cellphones as part of an arrest.

The Canadian court split 4-3 in this major test of privacy in the digital age. Under common law rules developed by judges over centuries, police have the right during an arrest to search an individual’s handbag, purse or briefcase for evidence related to the crime he or she is suspected of committing or for weapons. The question was whether cellphones or other digital devices, because they may contain a vast amount of personal information, are an exception to those rules.

Kevin Fearon was suspected in an armed robbery of a jewellery kiosk at a Toronto flea market in 2009. When he was arrested, a police officer found a cellphone on him and, finding no password protection, looked quickly through texts and photographs. He found a message saying “We did it,” and he found a picture of a handgun. Mr. Fearon admitted to the robbery but said that he had used a fake gun, and that police had no right to search his cellphone. He was convicted of armed robbery, and the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the conviction, but said that if the cellphone’s contents had been protected by a password, the search would have been illegal. ..Continued.. by Sean Fine - Justice reporter

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#YouGotServed – Canadian Courts Confirm The Use Of Social Media for Alternative Service

12-3-2014 Canada:

As of mid 2014, an estimated 15.8 million Canadians still read newspaper content weekly and almost 10 million of those exclusively choose the print edition. Alternative service by print advertisement is a convention that Courts are comfortable with, and with almost 10 million unique weekly readers, there's no mystery as to why. Publication of notice in the local newspaper's print edition is an enduring staple of the alternative service toolbox.1

Recently, Courts have started upgrading that tool-box, and are increasingly turning to new, and potentially more effective alternative service methods. While print newspapers still boast substantial readership stats those stats pale in comparison with the usage and adoption of social media platforms. An estimated 24 million Canadians visit social media sites each year, and Facebook alone is reported to have 19 million Canadian members that log on at least once per month.2

Civil procedure rules regarding alternative service differ between the provinces. Some jurisdictions have retained language expressly requiring applicants to establish that a proposed method of alternative service is likely to provide the intended party with actual notice of the document at issue. However, even where this requirement is not an express element of the applicable court rule, the exercise of serving documents by alternative means is still guided by the objective of bringing those documents to the attention of the recipient.

Thus, in an era where 87% of Canadian households are connected to the internet and 60% of Canadians are accessing it through a mobile device, it's easy to see why Facebook, Twitter and other electronic communication platforms increasingly appear attractive as mechanisms through which to reliably provide notice of documents and proceedings.3 ..Continued.. by Rohan Hill

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Self-referrals for sexual behaviour treatment increasing, says The Royal

9-16-2014 Canada:

More people are talking to their doctors seeking referrals to The Royal’s sexual behaviours clinic to receive treatment for sexually deviant behaviour such as exhibitionism, voyeurism and pedophilia, says a clinic coordinator in the forensic treatment unit.

Lisa Murphy said in the last five years there has been an increase in self-referrals from concerned individuals who were not sent there by the courts.

“We are seeing people come in and say they either went to their doctor and got a doctor referral or they contacted the clinic and said, ‘I have these interests, I don’t want to have these interests, I don’t want to act on them, I need help,’” said Murphy.

“That’s obviously ideal for us in that we are able to see these individuals that have these interests before they go ahead and act on them and create a victim.”

It’s this increase that has got The Royal’s staff thinking of ways to ramp up prevention efforts and create more awareness about the services available for people who want help curbing their sexual interests.

Murphy will be speaking Thursday about the clinic and Canada’s approach to the sex offender registry at a panel discussion moderated by Dr. Paul Fedoroff, director of the sexual behaviours clinic. Staff Sgt. Dana Reynolds and Det. Mark Horton of Ottawa police will also speak to their experiences of managing of high risk offenders.

Since its inception in 1983, the sexual behaviours clinic has treated more than 4,100 people and nowadays, it typically sees 100 new men each year.

Since Dr. Fedoroff took over the clinic, no one who has received treatment after committing sexual abuse has gone on to reoffend, according to Murphy.

Treatment can range from group therapy sessions, testosterone blocking medication, and psychiatric sessions, to support from social workers.

Murphy suspects the recent surge in self-referrals might have to do with a societal acceptance that not all child abusers are “monsters,” and in some cases they don’t want to hurt children.

“More people are finding out that this treatment is out there,” said Murphy, “and I also think that more people are finding that we are saying, ‘you’re not unfixable.’”

More information about the panel discussion is available at theroyal.ca. ..Source.. by Joe Lofaro

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Top Canadian court rules search warrant needed to access Internet information

6-15-2014 Canada:

OTTAWA -- The police need a search warrant to get information from Internet service providers about their subscribers' identities during investigations, the Supreme Court of Canada says in a landmark ruling affirming Canadians' right to online privacy.

The high court's landmark 8-0 ruling on online privacy issues came in the appeal of a Saskatchewan man facing child pornography charges. The court affirmed that when Canadians surf the web, they should be guaranteed a degree of anonymity.

The ruling also has political implications for the federal government's current cyber-bullying bill, setting the stage for another clash between the Harper government and the Supreme Court.

The ruling deals with a 19-year-old Saskatchewan man who was charged with possessing and distributing child pornography after police used his Internet address to get further details from his online service provider, all without first obtaining a search warrant.

Lawyers for the man argued that violated his constitutional right to be protected from unlawful search and seizure.

But in this specific case, the Supreme Court ruled that the details gathered should not be excluded as evidence from the man's trial, saying the police acted in good faith.

"A warrantless search, such as the one that occurred in this case, is presumptively unreasonable," Justice Thomas Cromwell wrote for the court.

"The Crown bears the burden of rebutting this presumption." ..Continued.. by Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press

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Supreme Court sides with Ontario privacy czar in release of sex offender data

4-24-2014 Canada:

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled against the Ontario government in a case involving access to some information from the province’s sex offender registry.

A freedom-of-information request asked the ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services to disclose the number of offenders living in each area designated by the first three digits of Ontario postal codes.

The ministry refused, citing privacy exemptions. The province’s information commissioner ruled the exemptions did not apply and ordered disclosure. The ministry unsuccessfully appealed that decision before turning to the Supreme Court.

In its 7-0 decision, the high court sided with the commissioner.

“We are of the view that the commissioner made no reviewable error in ordering disclosure,” Justices Thomas Cromwell and Richard Wagner wrote on behalf of the court.

They said the commissioner carefully considered the relationship between the sex registry law and the freedom of information statute.

“She reasonably concluded that disclosure could not lead to the identification of offenders or of their home addresses and that the ministry did not provide sufficient evidence of the risk of the harms which the relied-on exemptions seek to prevent,” the ruling said.

“We would dismiss the appeal.” ..Source.. by Canadian Press

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Canada's high court upholds sentence for man who sabotaged condoms

A NEW type of sexual assault. i.e., Don't mess with birth control. And he ends up on their NON-PUBLIC (so far) sex offender registry. Read the court's decision.

3-10-2014 Canada:

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, Canada (CBC News/CNN) - A Nova Scotia man is in jail, serving the remainder of an 18-month sentence for sexual assault. On Friday, the Supreme Court of Canada rejected the appeal of Craig Hutchinson.

Hutchinson admitted to tampering with his girlfriend's condoms in a bid to save their relationship. "Obviously, it's a disappointing outcome," said Luke Craggs, defense lawyer, after news his client has lost his final appeal in a legal saga that's dragged on for seven years.

In the summer of 2006, Hutchinson thought he could save his relationship by getting his girlfriend pregnant. So he poked holes in her condoms. She got pregnant. But when he confessed what he'd done, she ended the relationship, terminated the pregnancy and called the cops.

"I don't know if there's going to be any other cases like this," Craggs said. "It's not every day you not only hear about someone sabotaging the birth control that a woman was counting on, but handing her the evidence that she would need to take this to the police."

The supreme court decision clarifies the issue of consent when it comes to sexual assault.

It's not enough for someone to try to deceive their partner.

"That is not enough to be convicted of sexual assault," said prosecutor Jim Gumpert. "There has to be the second component, not just fraud, but a significant risk of serious bodily harm."

AIDS activists intervened in this case, fearing the ruling could cost them legal rights they had won in recent decisions.

The Hutchinson decision did not affect their interests.

"We are very happy about this," said Cecile Kazatchkine of Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. "This is exactly why we intervened before the Supreme Court of Canada. This is exactly what we were hoping for."

The Supreme Court ruling means the sentence imposed is now in effect. Hutchinson will serve about a year in jail before he's eligible for release. In addition, his name is on the national sex offender registry, and he's had to give a DNA sample. ..Source.. by CBC News

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Pedophilia Is A Sexual Orientation, Canadian Experts Say

12-26-2013 Canada:

Doctors in Canada say pedophilia is a sexual orientation that is partly wired in the brain and can’t be changed.

After a decade of research, Dr. James Cantor and his team at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health say some people are born pedophiles, meaning they are primarily sexually attracted to children.

Researchers say one to five percent of all men are pedophiles.

“It’s become harder and harder to explain pedophilia on just (early childhood events),” said Cantor. “It’s either purely biological or a mix of biological and experiential. But pure experience can’t explain these data.”

Cantor says physical traits, determined before birth, are predictors for pedophilia — making it “prenatal.”

Researchers examined male sex offenders using MRIs and found that they have less connective tissue in their brain than other criminal offenders.

Cantor described these sex offenders as having “cross-wiring” in the brain. Things that typically inspire nurturing or protective responses from adults, evoke sexual reactions in pedophiles.

But pedophilia expert Dr. Michael Seto says sex offenders and pedophiles must be distinguished.

“Not all sex offenders who target children are pedophiles, and not all pedophiles are sex offenders,” said Seto, forensic researcher with the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group.

He said only 50 to 60 percent of sex offenders are pedophiles.

Canada recently announced tougher punishment for child predators, but Seto said this is a misguided. He says these measures will “further drive individuals underground.”

“It could also lead to problems that decrease the likelihood they can successfully be integrated,” he said.

“Right now, it's really slanted so that the treatment services are for people who have gotten into trouble,” he said. “Obviously, we need that, but I think where there is a big gap is in terms of prevention. How do we reach people who are sexually attracted to children and are aware of it?”

Seto argues that labeling pedophilia as a sexual orientation could prevent child sex abuse.

“Pedophiles will remain hidden if they continue to be hated and feared, which would impede efforts to better understand this sexual orientation and thereby prevent child sexual exploitation,” he wrote. ..Source.. by Sarah Fruchtnicht

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Is pedophilia a sexual orientation?

12-22-2013 Canada:

Dr. James Cantor of CAMH has shown pedophilia is like a sexual orientation — a deep attraction that cannot change. Now, pedophiles who have never molested children are seeking social acceptance.

Pedophilia has been widely viewed as a psychological disorder triggered by early childhood trauma.

Now, many experts see it as a biologically rooted condition that does not change — like a sexual orientation — thanks largely to a decade of research by Dr. James Cantor at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Cantor’s team has found that pedophiles share a number of physical characteristics, including differences in brain wiring. It’s now thought that about 1 to 5 per cent of men are pedophiles, meaning they are primarily attracted to children.

These findings have been widely accepted among scientists, but have had little impact on social attitudes or law. However, we are left with the alarming question: if some men are born pedophiles, what should society do with them?

Bolstered by this research, pedophiles who have never molested children are seeking social acceptance.

‘We can resist’

Ethan Edwards has always loved little girls.

For years, he told himself his feelings were protective and loving, nothing more. But when he hit 50, he found he couldn’t stifle his desires any longer.

“I realized that young girls certainly took my breath away, more than grown-ups are usually charmed by kids,” he says.

Edwards, using a pseudonym, wrote about this realization on Virtuous Pedophiles, a website he co-founded for pedophiles who have never molested children. The group says their attraction is one they were born with and cannot change, but can control.

Edwards says the goal of Virtuous Pedophiles is to prevent child abuse, by reducing the stigma against non-offender pedophiles.

“We do not choose to be attracted to children, and we cannot make that attraction go away,” reads the website, which has about 200 members.

“But we can resist the temptation to abuse children sexually, and many of us present no danger to children whatsoever. Yet we are despised for having a sexual attraction that we did not choose, cannot change, and successfully resist.”

The biology of pedophiles

Sitting inside his office at the College St. research hospital, Cantor is surrounded by books on sexology and eccentric decor — a framed sign that reads “Data Is My Porn,” a throw pillow that spells “penis” in Braille.

Down the hall at the Kurt Freund Phallometric Lab, Cantor’s research team conducts experiments on convicted sex offenders. The men view nude images of children and adults of both sexes, while a device measures blood flow to their penises.

The method, called phallometry and invented by Freund in the 1950s, accurately measures sexual interests in 90 per cent of men, Cantor says.

“It’s the most obvious test in the world,” he says. “The procedure gives us a relative measure of how he reacts to the adult categories versus the child categories.”

His team has found that pedophiles share many physical characteristics. They are shorter, on average, than other men. They are three times more likely to be left-handed or ambidextrous. Their IQs are about 10 to 15 points lower. Finally, they are more prone to childhood head injuries — which Cantor chalks up to a natural clumsiness.

These physical characteristics are determined before birth, so the explanation for pedophilia must be in part prenatal, Cantor says.

“It’s become harder and harder to explain pedophilia on just (early childhood events). It’s either purely biological or a mix of biological and experiential. But pure experience can’t explain these data.”

Cantor, an internationally respected clinical psychologist, has also conducted studies with sex offenders using MRIs. He has found they have less white matter — the connective tissue that carries messages to other parts of the brain — than other types of criminal offenders.

The evidence suggests pedophilia results from atypical wiring in the brain. Cantor calls it “cross-wiring”: the stimuli that usually evoke nurturing and protective reactions in adults is instead evoking sexual reactions in pedophiles.

Similar experiments are being conducted across the globe, most notably at Berlin’s Institute of Sexology and Sexual Medicine, but Cantor’s research has greatly influenced the view among researchers that pedophilia has a biological basis.

Pedophiles are thought to be overwhelmingly men. About a third of those men prefer boys, about a third prefer girls, and a third will be attracted to both.

Although female sex offenders exist, they are rare and it is more difficult to test their desires. Queen’s University sexologist Dr. Meredith Chiversconducted a similar genital-based test on women, but found, curiously, that females respond to everything — including images of bonobos copulating. (One theory is that during evolution, women developed this response as an automatic defence mechanism for rape.)

Some researchers disagree on whether the brain differences in pedophiles occurred before birth or in early development. Regardless, many are coming around to the view that pedophiles cannot be “cured” — but some can be stopped from molesting children.

Preventing child abuse

“Not all sex offenders who target children are pedophiles, and not all pedophiles are sex offenders,” says Dr. Michael Seto, a pedophilia expert and forensic researcher with the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group.

Seto, a former colleague of Cantor’s at CAMH, has found that only 50 to 60 per cent of convicted sex offenders are pedophiles. The rest have sexually abused children for reasons beyond attraction — personality disorders, chaotic households or violent impulses.

His research has focused on psychological traits shared by sex offenders, potentially providing insight into why some pedophiles molest children, while other “virtuous” pedophiles like Edwards are apparently able to control their urges. ..Continued.. by Laura Kane News reporter

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Toronto reporter issues libel notice to Rob Ford over 'pedophile insinuation'

12-13-2013 Canada:

TORONTO - Mayor Rob Ford was slapped with a libel notice late Thursday for televised comments he made about a reporter, who said the remarks amounted to an accusation of pedophilia.

Toronto Star reporter Daniel Dale would not comment on his suit that also names Vision TV, which aired the Ford interview, saying an article he wrote for his newspaper would have to stand.

"Enough is enough. I can't tolerate it. I won't tolerate it," Dale wrote.

"I'm asking Ford to immediately retract the false insinuation that I am a pedophile. I am also serving Vision TV, which twice broadcast Ford's vile and defamatory remarks...even though their interview was filmed days before it aired."

The notice also calls for Vision TV to apologize.

Ford said a day after the interview that he stood by "every word."

In the interview broadcast Monday, Ford told host Conrad Black that Dale had perpetrated the worst invasion of his privacy during a May 2012 incident.

"Daniel Dale is in my backyard taking pictures. I have little kids. He's taking pictures of little kids," Ford told the former media baron and convicted felon.

"I don't want to say that word but you start thinking what this guy is all about."

Dale maintains he was writing a story about a plot of public land adjacent to Ford's house that the mayor wanted to buy, so he went to take a look when the mayor emerged from his home to confront him.

The reporter said at no time did he ever take any photographs of the mayor's family, house or even his property — and a police investigation bore that out.

He said he was suing reluctantly, and only because Ford was repeating lies about what had actually happened.

He cited Ford's comments on the Washington-based "Sports Junkies" program on Thursday in which Ford said, "When you've got young kids, that freaked me right out."

The comments brought renewed attention to the "malicious and defamatory insinuation" that the reporter had some sort of "predatory interest in young children," Dale said, adding that he has received strong support.

"Dozens of people, including people personally harmed by pedophilia, have offered me a total of thousands of dollars in donations for my legal fees," Dale said.

The libel notice is the first step in the process of suing for defamation. If Ford refuses to apologize and withdraw the comments, Dale said, the mayor would have to be prepared to "repeat his lies under penalty of perjury" in a courtroom.

There was no immediate response from Ford or his lawyer to the libel notice.

On Tuesday, however, a defiant Ford refused to apologize to Dale or clarify his comments.

"I stand by my words, what I said with Conrad Black,'' an angry Ford told a news conference.

"I stand by every word I said."

ZoomerMedia, which owns Vision TV, posted a statement on the website for its radio station AM740.

"As there is now the threat of legal action, ZoomerMedia will not be making a statement until such time as we can consult with our attorneys to consider the allegations and determine next steps," the statement said.

Also late Thursday, Black told The Canadian Press that Dale was on thin ice with the action.

"If the Star goes to court with this turkey, they'll be killed," Black said in an email.

"They raised the pedophilia question; Ford didn't."

Black declined to discuss the matter further or elaborate on previous comments that Dale might have a case because it was now a legal action.

Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly, who has assumed most of the mayor's powers in light of the various scandals, has denounced Ford's comments as "beyond the pale" and called on him to apologize. ..Source.. by Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press

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Harper: Sex Offenders Will Need To Notify Before Leaving Canada

9-18-2013 Canada:

RICHMOND, B.C. - Convicted sex offenders planning to travel outside the country will have to alert Canadian authorities before they leave and Canadian officials may, in turn, warn destination countries under proposed changes announced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Monday.

Harper also promised a national, online database accessible to the public listing the names of high-risk child sex offenders, to replace a patchwork of existing databases.

"We do not understand why child predators do the heinous things they do and, in all frankness, we don't particularly care to," Harper said in Richmond, B.C., as dozens of Canada Border Services Agency officers stood behind him.

"What we do understand is that there are some terrible people out there, criminals of the worst kind, and that they must be dealt with."

Harper said that the measures will be included in the Conservatives' Tougher Penalties for Child Predators Act to be introduced in Parliament this fall.

That legislation would require convicted sex offenders, parole and probation officers to notify police in advance of international travel plans, and authorize police to inform Canadian border guards who can — "where appropriate" — alert destination countries that a dangerous offender is coming their way.

"Just as we must protect Canadian children, we should do what we can to protect innocent kids beyond our borders," Harper said.

The national registry would include the names of high-risk child sex offenders who have been the subject of local or provincial public notifications.

The proposed changes would also include measures to improve information sharing between police and border officials in order to track sex offenders.

Harper cited the case of Howard Cotterman, a registered American sex offender who had been returning to the U.S. after a vacation in Mexico in April 2007.

A forensic examination of Cotterman's laptop revealed hundreds of images of Cotterman molesting a young girl and he was arrested.

"Cotterman was apprehended basically though information sharing," Harper said. "However, if Cotterman were Canadian, under our current practices this might not have happened.

"Gaps in information collection and sharing, as well as gaps in enforcement, mean child predators can slip over our borders unmonitored. That is going to change."

It's unclear, however, how Canadian border officials would have missed a similar case.

According to reports, U.S. border agents found Cotterman's name on a national database as a sex offender for a 1992 conviction for sexually assaulting a minor.

They retrieved from his car two laptop computers and three digital cameras, and undertook a forensic examination of the devices. After breaking the password protection on his laptop they found 378 images taken over several years, most of them showing Cotterman sexually assaulting a girl between 7 and 10 years old.

A district judge suppressed the evidence, finding it violated Cotterman's protection against unreasonable search but a federal appeal court upheld the seizure and search.

Brian McConaghy, a former RCMP child predator investigator and founder of the charity Ratanak International, welcomed the changes.

McConaghy, whose charity rescues and offers rehabilitation for children exploited in Cambodia, said Canadian predators all too often find their victims in countries without the resources to combat their crimes.

"There's not efficient policing, there's not social services, there's not supportive families so these predators go overseas to find the weakest link and the most vulnerable children," he said after watching Harper announce the measures.

"Slowly but surely we're whittling away at the various loopholes they can use to have freedom to move around."

Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu and Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham were also among the crowd at Monday's announcement, along with Tom Stamatakis, president of the Canadian Police Association.

Stamatakis thanked the prime minister for the new measures and for previous amendments that, among other things, created minimum sentences for the assault of a child under 16 and made it illegal to use a computer to communicate with a child for the purpose of committing an offence.

"With these measures, the message to those who prey on children is clear: This future legislation will be part of a well-co-ordinated assault on their abilities to exploit our children, our most vulnerable members of society." ..Source.. by The Cnadian Press

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John St-Onge Barred From Legoland Discovery Center Because He Was Unaccompanied By A Child

7-12-2013 Canada:

A self-described "Lego fanatic" isn't feeling the love after a trip to the Legoland Discovery Center in Vaughan, Canada, ended before he was even allowed inside.

John St-Onge, was barred from entering a Legoland Discovery Center because he was not accompanied by a child. His adult daughter, Nicole, had traveled with St-Onge on the three-hour drive from their hometown of Windsor, Ontario, to realize her father's long-time dream, but that was not enough to get them through the door, CTV News reports.

“I felt discriminated against,” St-Onge recalled to the National Post. “[I was thinking] ‘What, are you painting a label on my back, that I'm a pedophile?’ That's what really, really, really bothered me. What do you think I'm going to do in there?”

St-Onge says his interest in the toy playsets began when his kids were born and continued long after they outgrew them. He now has an estimated 50,000 lego pieces in his collection, which he uses to stay occupied when health problems keep him indoors. (John has diabetes and cancer, and he is recovering from heart surgery, CTV notes.)

He's long wanted to visit the Legoland store in Denmark -- the location of the company's headquarters -- but the same health problems that keep him indoors also prevent him from flying.
"The look on his face was like a child not getting the gift at Christmas that they want," Nicole told the outlet. "He felt discriminated against because he's a senior citizen who also happens to like Lego."

In an emailed comment to The Huffington Post, the Vaughan Legoland Discovery Center's general manager René Gurtner explained the policy is intended to create a safe, family-oriented environment. ..continued.. by Ryan Grenoble

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Charges dismissed against sex offender who stayed at campground

5-15-2013 Canada:

A judge has ruled not all areas of Bell's Point Campground should be considered a 'public park', dismissing charges against a convicted sex offender who admitted to staying at the campground last summer.

“It's a satisfactory conclusion to a difficult matter,” said Eric McCooeye, the man's lawyer.

William Ayotte, 43, pleaded not-guilty at a trial in March where he was accused to breaching a court order imposed in 2008 after he was convicted of sex offences involving two 13-year-old girls.

Ayotte was prohibited from, among other places, “a public park or swimming area where persons under the age of 16 years are present or can reasonably be expected to be present.”

While Ayotte acknowledged staying at the campground, which is owned by Garden River First Nation, he told the court in March that he remained at his campsite and only went to the water to launch his boat and go for a ride. He testified he never was in the playground or swimming area and took along a portable toilet so he wouldn't have to use the campground's communal toilets or showers.

Ontario Court Justice Melanie Dunn found, in a written decision released Wednesday, that Ayotte did not breach the order because he did not attend the playground or swimming area at Bell's Point. She said those areas would be public parks and public swimming areas, as described in the order, but noted Ayotte confined himself to his campsite.

“One cannot reasonably expect children to wander upon their personal campsite. One can expect other persons to remain off of their site. It is akin to a motel or hotel room,” Dunn wrote.

Earlier in her decision, Dunn pointed out that swimmers are not allowed at the boat launch, which is separate from the swimming area at Bell's Point, due to safety concerns.

“However desirable it may be to keep those convicted of sexual offences against children from all public places where persons under a specified age may be nearby such as hotels, malls or even grocery stores, that is not what Parliament intended when drafting section 161,” Dunn wrote. ..Source.. by Michael Purvis

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Sex offender denied medication

2-17-2013 Canada:

NORTH BAY - Shocking behaviour by a man outside a retirement home could have been avoided if he was able to receive his medication while in the city, a North Bay court heard.

John Armstrong, 42, a long-haul truck driver from Bracebridge, made four attempts to receive his medication by injection through the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, but he was turned away each time, his lawyer said.

A support worker at the home for seniors and people who require assisted living, witnessed him last summer kneeling in front of the Fraser Street building shortly before 6 a.m. and performing sex acts while wearing only a bra and underwear.

Ontario Court Justice Jean-Gilles Lebel said it's the most shocking behaviour he has faced during his time on the bench, but that it wouldn't have happened if Armstrong had received the medication.

Armstrong has received treatment for mental issues since the age of 14, he has been a client of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health since his early 20s and is currently taking a number of medications, said his lawyer, Erin Lainevool.

His parents took steps for him to receive health assessments, and his care has involved several levels within the mental health system, she said.

Court heard Armstrong doesn't recall his behaviour that morning, and he was in distress because he locked himself out of his rig, couldn't receive his medication and made the poor choice of drinking heavily leading up to his arrest.

North Bay Police Service found him about a half hour later walking barefoot on Algonquin Avenue with nowhere to go. His smelled of alcohol and his speech was slurred.

Armstrong, who has remained out of custody, pleaded guilty this week to performing the indecent act by exposing himself in public and was sentenced to three months that he could serve in his residence under a curfew followed by probation for two years.

The judge also ordered Armstrong to register as a sex offender for 10 years and give a DNA sample since this is his second offence for an indecent act. ..Source.. by MARIA CALABRESE

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Sex killers not who you think they are, researchers say

8-22-2012 Canada:

Study said to reveal clearest picture yet of these murderers and their victims

Drawing from the largest-ever sample of sex-related homicide cases in Canada, a pair of researchers have developed what they say is one of the clearest portraits yet of the people who commit these unusual crimes and their victims.

Contrary to previous studies that suggested sexual murderers were socially inept individuals who “blitzed” unsuspecting victims, many sexual murderers are not socially isolated and often utilize a ruse to make contact with their victim, the researchers found.

“The current study uncovers very important differences that could prove useful for the investigation and profiling of these crimes by the police,” the researchers wrote.

The release of the study this month in the International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology comes just months after the nation was gripped by the gruesome sex-related killing and dismemberment of Concordia University student Jun Lin.

Luka Magnotta, a one-time porn actor and model, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in relation to the killing.

Eric Beauregard, a criminology professor at Simon Fraser University, and Melissa Martineau, a senior research specialist with the RCMP, analyzed RCMP records related to 350 sex-related homicides that occurred from 1948 to 2010.

Each murder case involved some sort of sexual activity. For instance, there was evidence of sexual intercourse or the victim’s body was positioned in a sexual manner or was missing clothes.

The researchers found that the average age of sexual murderers was 28. Sixty-six per cent were white and 29 per cent were aboriginal. As for marital status, 57 per cent were single and 15 per cent were separated or divorced. A majority of offenders – 80 per cent – had no prior sexual convictions.

“The investigative strategy of prioritizing ‘known sex offenders’ would thus likely be unproductive as the majority of sexual murderers have no prior convictions for sexual crimes,” the researchers wrote.

The average age of victims was 27. Ninety per cent were women, 63 per cent were white and 33 per cent were aboriginal. Eighteen per cent of victims were known to engage in prostitution.

The researchers found that most offenders selected their victim at random, and most – 41 per cent – used a con to approach their victim, such as befriending the victim or asking for the victim’s help. Only a minority of sexual murderers surprised their victims, such as attacking them in their sleep, or “blitzed” their victims by quickly overpowering them through violence.

“This finding is important for the investigation of these cases as it suggests that in almost half of the cases, sexual murderers possess the necessary social skills to approach their victims under false pretence,” the researchers wrote. “This once against contradicts the image of the introverted social inapt offender as depicted in previous studies.”

Contrary to non-sexual homicides, offenders in sexual homicides rarely used firearms. Instead sexual murderers typically beat or strangled their victims. If a weapon was used, it was typically a knife.

Researchers noted that “overkill” – the act of inflicting more grievous bodily harm on a victim than is necessary to cause death – was reported in 43 per cent of sexual homicides.

In six per cent of cases, the offender dismembered the victim’s body. ..Source.. by DOUGLAS QUAN, Postmedia News

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What determines who is a dangerous offender?

8-13-2012 Canada:

Admitted child abductor Randall Hopley was sent for a psychiatric assessment on August 9 to determine if he should be declared a dangerous offender.

Hopley was remanded into the custody of the Forensic Psychiatric Services Commission for 60 days. He will likely be sent to Port Coquitlam's Forensic Psychiatry Hospital.

Should he be deemed a dangerous offender (DO), Hopley could be imprisoned indefinitely. He has admitted to abducting three-year old Kienan Hebert in September, 2011.

According to a 2002 report from Correctional Service Canada, sexual offences are the leading conviction for DOs at 84 per cent. They are followed by kidnapping at 27 per cent, while murder is second on the list at two per cent. Homicide is usually exempt from DO or long-term offender status according to the legislation. Pedophilia offences accounted for 41 per cent of DO statuses.

High risk offender laws were added to the Canadian constitution in 1947, but they have been restructured several times since then. The current program was introduced in 1977 after a review was ordered by the Canadian Committee on Corrections.

The law in which Hopley has been remanded in custody was implemented in the 1990's. Crown counsel can seek DO status, pending a psychiatric assessment. The status provides a tool for courts to impose conditions on an offender if there are reasonable fears that they will commit a criminal organization, terrorism offence, a sexual offence against someone under the age of 16, or a "serious personal injury offence."

In 2008 new reforms gave Crown counsel the ability to notify the court of a DO application should the accused by convicted of a third designated offence.

The court must prove that severe psychological damage was or was likely to have been done to the victim, and the accused is then sent for a psychological assessment.

Hopley's assessment will determine if he is a DO, and if it is decided he does not fit the criteria, he will be evaluated for long-term offender status.

A DO declaration imposes an indefinite prison term - the toughest punishment under Canadian law, and as previously mentioned, a status that has been reserved for Canada's most dangerous and violent criminals. A long-term offender will get a set prison term, but will be monitored either for life, or for 10 years after completing the prison time.

In her decision Thursday, Supreme Court Justice Heather Holmes cited Hopley's criminal record, which included a conviction for sexual assault in September, 1985. He served two years in prison and three years probation. Hopley protested the second charge used as a basis for the DO assessment, which was a break and enter from March 2008. Charges of sexual assault were stayed in that case, and Hopley received 18 months.

Holmes noted that all offences for which Hopley is currently appearing in court for are punishable by a sentence of 10 years or more. She also told court that one of the victims in the previous crimes committed by Hopley did suffer prolonged psychiatric difficulties.

While the Crown did not establish that severe psychological damage had been done in the case of the Hebert family, Holmes determined it was likely that the crimes against Kienan could have to a different family.

"I'm satisfied that the low threshold is met," she said. "It is clear that Mr. Hopley has been convicted previously of a designated offence."

One of Canada's most infamous criminals of all, Paul Bernardo was granted the status for a string of rapes and three murders committed with his wife and accomplice, Karla Homolka, in the late '80s and early '90s.

More recently, Russell Williams, who murdered two women and was convicted of 88 charges in total including many break and enters, did not receive DO status, although it was discussed during the trial.

The Crown attorney decided adding DO status would be redundant because Williams was handed a mandatory sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years for first-degree murder. It was decided that the criminal record of Williams would sufficiently prove that he will pose a danger for the rest of his life, even after the 25 years until a parole hearing is allowed. ..Source.. by Annalee Grant

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New online scam holds computers for ransom

7-6-2012 Canada:

A new online scam that freezes computers with a message purportedly from RCMP and associating users with child pornography has moved across the world and into North America.

RCMP issued a warning about the new computer virus after receiving 200 reports since February of the malware attacking Canadian residents.

The "ransomware," which in recent years had been contained to Russia and nearby countries, freezes the computer and creates a pop-up message - claiming to be from the RCMP or other government agencies - informing users that their computer is associated with child pornography or illegal music downloading and demands a $100 payment to unlock the computer.

The mention of child pornography often shocks victims who rush to pay the ransom through an online payment service called Ukash. The illegal activity accusation mixed with a fake message from law enforcement scares people, said Sgt. Stephane Turgeon of the RCMP technological crime unit.

"People think it must be true and they'll be charged so maybe they should send the money right away," Turgeon said. "These messages are scams - never send money to somebody you don't know. RCMP and the government do not ask for money in this way."

RCMP have received one report of the scam in Saskatchewan. The malware is probably more widespread in Canada than the 200 reports to RCMP since it is likely many more people with affected computers have not reported the incidents, Turgeon said. People should not hesitate to report the scam since it could help the RCMP investigation, he added.

Investigations into computer scams are difficult because technology allows suspects to conceal their actual location through proxy servers in different countries and the malware's computer code changes often, Turgeon said.

"These are highly complex investigations involving international jurisdictions," he said. "The best way to investigate is through old-fashioned police work through interviewing witnesses and following tips."

The attacks appear to originate in eastern European countries, Turgeon said. The first widespread use of the malware happened in Russia several years ago, but has since moved across Europe and now North America.

The malware attacks out-of-date operating systems so computer users should make sure their operating systems and anti-virus and firewall software are running with the latest updates installed, Turgeon said. If you have an infected computer, take it to a technician who can remove the malware.

People can report incidents of the "ransomware" to the Canadian Anti-fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501. ..Source.. by Jeremy Warren, The StarPhoenix

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