Canada Flag

Here are some more information for Canada Flag:

Can Any Criminal Record Be Pardoned In Canada?

Occasionally I receive calls from concerned members of the Canadian public who believe that Canadians with criminal records should not be able to receive a pardon.

Whatever your opinion is on the matter, most of the callers have a misconception that anyone can receive a pardon, for any criminal offence, and that there are no systems in place to protect the public from the most serious offenders after they have received a pardon. It couldn't be farther from the truth.

The vast majority of Pardon applicants have minor offences from 10, 20, 30, sometimes even 40 years ago; the most common of these offences including minor thefts, DUIs and the like. The simple fact is that people make mistakes. In fact, at any given time, as many as three million Canadians have a criminal record.

Pardon applicants must go through a rigorous screening process. Before a person can even be considered for the pardon, and they must prove they have been a good citizen and have remained crime-free for at least 5 years. Likewise, pardon applicants cannot have been the subject of a police investigation or arrest during the last five years. Even traffic tickets can make a pardon application subject to a proposal to deny by the Board when their application is under review. There are also numerous limitations imposed on pardons, which I touched on in another article, The Limitations of Pardons.

In any case, only those truly deserving of having their criminal record expunged will ultimately receive a pardon. In fact, of the 350,000 Canadians that have received pardons in 1970, approximately 97 percent of these are still in force, indicating that the vast majority of pardon recipients remain crime-free in the community.

With regards to serious offences, not all can be pardoned.  Anyone convicted of murder will never become eligible for a Federal pardon. In order to be eligible, you must complete your sentence(s) and then remain crime free and of good conduct for the appropriate eligibility period. Since individuals with murder convictions are on life parole, they are never considered to have completed their sentence. Those convicted of murder may apply for a Royal Prerogative of Mercy, but these are rarely granted, only 2 having been granted from 2007 through 2008. Similarly, anyone designated a dangerous offender will never become eligible to be considered for a pardon, ensuring society is not jeopardized by the most dangerous members at large.

By far the most contentious issue of the Canadian pardon system is how to handle criminal records of a sexual nature. Pardons are available for past sex offenders; however, they also come with meaningful restrictions. Anyone who receives a pardon for a sexual offence will have their record held separate and apart from normal criminal record systems such as the Canadian Police Information System; however, their name will remain flagged in a special database. In the event that they apply for a job or volunteer position involving vulnerable persons, generally defined as youth, elderly, the mentally infirm, or anyone otherwise physically or mentally vulnerable, they will have to undergo a vulnerable sector search, which will turn up the flag.

If you would like to learn more about these restrictions on pardons, you may wish to read some additional information on pardons.

About the Author

Jared Church is an RCMP accredited member of the Paralegal Society of Canada and a leading expert in the field of Canadian criminal record systems, Canadian Pardons, U.S. Entry Waivers, record purges and similar legal matters in Canada. Email Jared your questions at info@ExpressPardons.com
For more information on the author's firm, visit www.ExpressPardons.com

Does Canada lower it flag when the Queen visits??Did Canada applied for its sovereignty?

Does Canada have to lower its flag when the Queen visits it country now that Canada has applied for sovereignty?

The flag is lowered only to signify that the nation is officially recognizing a death usually of a significant person in government or military service, it is a sign of grief or mourning.

In all pragmatic terms with regard to governance Canada is a sovereign and independent nation from the rest of the United Kingdom and has been so for many decades.

Effective with the Constitution Act, 1982, "no British or other realm government can advise the sovereign on any matters pertinent to Canada", meaning that on all matters of the Canadian state, the monarch is advised solely by Canadian federal Ministers of the Crown.

That being said; Canada remains a Monarchy. Canada shares the same monarch with each of 15 monarchies in the 53-member Commonwealth of Nations, a grouping known informally as the Commonwealth realms.

The emergence of this arrangement paralleled the evolution of Canadian nationalism following the end of the First World War and culminated in the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, since when the pan-national Crown has had both a shared and separate character, and the sovereign's role as monarch of Canada has been distinct to his or her position as monarch of the United Kingdom.

As the monarch lives predominantly outside of Canada, one of the most important of these state duties carried out on the advice of the Canadian Prime Minister is the appointment of the federal viceroy, who is titled as Governor General, and performs most of the Queen's domestic duties in her absence.

The sovereign similarly only draws from Canadian coffers for support in the performance of her duties when in Canada or acting as Queen of Canada abroad; Canadians do not pay any money to the Queen or any other member of the Royal Family, either towards personal income or to support royal residences outside of Canada.

Feds to present widow of last Canadian WWI vet with Peace Tower flag
OTTAWA - Veterans Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn will present the widow of Canada's last-known First World War veteran with the flag that flew over Parliament the day he died.

Thanks for visiting!