Dear Readers,
It is with great pleasure that I lead off this issue of Porte ouverte, which is dedicated to the implementation of An Act respecting the Québec correctional system (the Act). I also face a considerable challenge as I take on the duties and responsibilities of Ms. Johanne Vallée who, after serving as Executive Director of the Association des services de réhabilitation sociale du Québec for eighteen years, was appointed Associate Deputy Minister heading the Direction générale des services correctionnels du Québec (SCQ – Québec Correctional Services) and given the mandate of implementing the Act. To that end, she surrounded herself with a team of dynamic and devoted people who assisted her in this colossal undertaking; I am privileged to be able to rely on that same team as I follow in her footsteps.
The implementation of the Act undoubtedly represents a historical landmark for corrections in the province of Québec. In addition to setting out clear principles—protection of society, respect for court decisions, and the reintegration of offenders—, the Act provides that the SCQ shall assess each person committed to their custody by resorting to all means possible to gather necessary information about these persons.
Hence, the implementation of the Act has allowed us to review how we conduct assessments and, in doing so, to implement a new actuarial tool for the assessment of risk and needs (Level of Service/Case Management Inventory). In addition to supporting clinical assessments conducted by professionals, this tool will assist in determining the level risk of reoffending and what needs ought to be targeted in the correctional plan.
The Act also provides for programmes and services to support the social reintegration of offenders, as well as the supervision of these persons in the community. This is where the contribution of community-based agencies involved in criminal justice will be highlighted. The Act also strengthens the conditional release process by making it more stringent, more open and more consistent, and by explicitly defining the criteria for release and the granting of the various categories of temporary absences.
Another important feature of this Act has to do with the legal acknowledgment of the rights of victims through the establishment of an information mechanism that will enable any victim who requests it to obtain information about the release of offenders sentenced to imprisonment. The Act also provides that victims are entitled to make written representations pertaining to the granting of a temporary absence or a conditional release to an offender.
Lastly, a point that will undoubtedly be of interest to the readers of Porte ouverte, the Act caps off thirty years of close collaboration by according formal recognition to community-based agencies involved in criminal justice and dedicated to the social reintegration of offenders.
That contribution by community-based agencies is an expression of the complementarity principle that is part of the new intervention philosophy of the SCQ in the area of social reintegration. Thus, the community agencies involved will be able to participate actively in the follow-up of offenders by developing and giving effect to an intervention strategy aimed at the implementation of the case management plan. Further, section 111 of the Act provides that these community agencies will, among other things, develop and implement psychosocial support and basic social skills development programs, as well as residential services with support and assistance activities.
In other respects, the climate that emerged from the discussions between the community representatives and the SCQ around the provincial negotiation table and the openness demonstrated by both parties lead us to expect a new era of collaboration based on mutual respect, on mutual trust and shared values. Finally, I am convinced that the new arrangements made possible under the Act will foster the social reintegration of offenders and, by the same token, enhance the protection of society. I am equally convinced that, ultimately, these will benefit the population of Québec as a whole. I hope you enjoy this issue of Porte ouverte.
