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| Accused of murder - Raymond Lee Caissie - police photo |
Surrey teen Serena Vermeersch's death should
be a wake-up call for the justice system
Bill Tieleman’s 24
Hours Vancouver / The
Tyee column
Tuesday
September 30, 2014
By Bill
Tieleman
"He
who does not prevent a crime when he can, encourages it."
- Seneca, Roman philosopher, 1st century BC
The
only possible positive development from the horrendous murder of Surrey
teenager Serena Vermeersch is that public demand to keep violent sex criminals
locked up forever may be irresistible.
And so
it should, because most if not all of those involved in horrific crimes cannot
be rehabilitated -- so our only choice is to protect society by permanently
jailing them.
The
accused, Raymond Lee Caissie, has not faced trial and must not be presumed
guilty in advance. Vermeersch's body
was found Sept. 16 and Caissie was arrested a week later.
But I
believe Caissie should never have been freed after being sentenced for terrible
sex crimes that put him behind bars for 22 years. He was released last year.
Nor
should many of the other 31 criminals designated under the Criminal Code as "high risk
offenders" who currently live in British Columbia communities
be at large. According to provincial Justice Ministry statistics, 115 high risk
offenders lived in B.C. between 2011 and 2013.
Caissie
received his sentence in 1991 for imprisonment for sexual assault, forcible
confinement and robbery. The details
are too horrible to repeat.
Caissie
said he was "comfortable in jail" and served his entire sentence, a
rarity.
After
his first hearing, the Parole Board of Canada said
he was likely to kill or seriously harm someone.
When
freed, a public warning went out saying Caissie was a high risk to reoffend,
yet he was not electronically monitored or given a curfew.
Great
plan. Rather than put out a warning that few likely heard or could act on, why
wasn't Caissie kept in jail indefinitely?
Worse,
Caissie breached his release conditions seven months after getting out and went
back to jail, but only for three months.
Civil
libertarians may object,
arguing that if a criminal has completed their sentence they should be
released.
But the
greater good requires that those who have committed serious crimes and are
likely to reoffend must remain in custody. Their crimes are not minor mistakes
that won't be repeated.
High-risk
for a reason
What
more evidence is needed for the federal Conservative government to act, and for
the New Democrat and Liberal opposition to guarantee speedy passage of new laws
keeping high risk offenders out of our communities?
Even
watching offenders 24 hours a day, seven days a week is no guarantee they won't
evade detection and commit another crime.
After
all, they are designated high risk to reoffend for a reason -- they are judged
to possibly commit a sexual offence against a child, a sexual assault with a
weapon or other similar crimes that carry sentences of 10 years or more
imprisonment.
In
other words, they are an extreme danger to any community.
The
Ministry of Justice can get a court order designating an individual as high
risk based on two Criminal Code
Sections:
"A
Section 810.1 is pursued in cases where a person fears another person will
commit a sexual offence against a child under the age of 16.
"A
Section 810.2 is pursued when a person fears another person may commit an
indictable offence (other than treason or murder) for which the offender may be
sent to imprisonment for 10 or more years, including sexual assault, sexual
assault with a weapon and aggravated sexual assault."
No
more lame excuses
Justice
Minister Suzanne Anton doesn't seem to understand public anger over this
murder.
"The
question really is, 'Are the appropriate tools in place?' And that is the
question I'm raising. I'm raising it with the federal minister. We owe it to
the Vermeersch family that our daughters are safe when they are waiting at bus
stops," Anton told reporters
last week.
"Should
there be electronic monitoring? I do think that that is something that
probably should be considered," Anton added.
Considered?
Make it mandatory for violent sex criminals!
Conservative
Justice Minister Peter MacKay said the federal government will "look"
at changes.
"We
are looking at ways in which we can toughen the parole provisions, but also
we're looking at ways in which the very worst, those who are most violent,
those who have committed offences, murder, in concert with other violent
offences against the public and the individual, that they're never
released," MacKay said
last week.
Not
good enough from a government in power since 2006.
Protecting the
innocent from the predatory must be the highest priority -- not lame excuses
after a horrific murder.
.
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