Ottawa, ON – Arpan Khanna, Conservative Shadow Minister for Justice & Attorney General of Canada, issued the following statement on comments from the Toronto Police Chief:
“After eleven years of soft-on-crime Liberal laws, crime has skyrocketed, and communities are less safe with a justice system that puts criminals before victims. Violent crime is up over 57 per cent, while firearm crime has soared 103 per cent and extortion has increased an astounding 297 per cent since the Liberals took office.
“Instead of keeping criminals in jail, Liberal bail – aka the ‘Principle of Restraint’ – has let them back out on the streets to offend again. That’s exactly what happened with the two perpetrators behind the shooting at the US consulate in Toronto on July 27.
“Yesterday, the Toronto Police confirmed that the shooters behind the attack on the US consulate were out on release, with one being charged with four counts of fail to comply and the other facing six counts of fail to comply with a release order. They aren’t alone, with Police Chief Myron Demkiw saying, ‘two of the top 20 criminal code offences associated with firearms offences are failing to comply with conditions and failing to comply with a probation order.’
“In fact, the consulate shooting is now part of ‘a broader pattern’ where convicted criminals are released and ‘go on to commit additional crimes, sometimes even more serious offences, including homicide.’ We have seen numerous cases in recent weeks of criminals continuing to be released, only to breach their conditions.
“Samuel Sawyer is still wanted by Niagara Police after allegedly shooting a 27-year-old in Fort Erie last week while out on a release order. A Brampton man accused of first-degree murder had already been charged with assault and criminal harassment of the victim, but was released the following day with a no-contact order. In Oshawa, a suspect already on a weapons prohibition shot and seriously injured a 20-year-old man.
“On Friday, a 37-year-old high-risk offender convicted of multiple sexual assaults in Guelph was arrested for the seventh time since 2023 for breaching probation. In fact, he had to be arrested so quickly after his release that the police didn’t even have a chance to warn the community about his release. Despite reportedly having a deportation order after being smuggled into Canada, he can’t be deported as a ‘protected person.’
“Families and communities are tired of being revictimized again and again by crime and disorder committed by the same offenders, which Liberal laws keep releasing on our streets. Not only have C-5 and C-75 been kept on the books, Carney’s flagship crime legislation C-16 introduced a ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card, empowering judges to ignore almost all mandatory minimum sentences, including for extortion with a firearm, human trafficking and aggravated sexual assault with a gun.
“Enough; Canadians deserve a criminal justice system that puts law-abiding people first. It’s time to actually reverse Liberal catch and release laws, repeal the ‘Principle of Restraint’ and strengthen our bail laws to restore safe streets again.”