The "Faint Hope Clause" (C.C.C. s.745.6): The judicial review process with special reference to the 1996 amendments.

Abstract

This study examines data provided by Correctional Service of Canada and the National Parole Board on applications for early parole under s.745.6 (the "Faint Hope Clause") both before and after the 1996 amendment to the clause. The data come from a Correctional Service Canada database containing comprehensive information about 1,325 individual case files of inmates convicted of first and second degree murder between 1961 and 2000. The data analyzed consist of statistics on counts of murder, inmates' current status as well as information on application and success rates. Similar data from the National Parole Board provide more detailed information on inmates' parole status. Overall, 82% of applicants have positive outcomes at judicial review. While there are substantially more applications from inmates convicted of first-degree murder (82%) than from inmates convicted of second-degree murder (18%), the second-degree murder applications have a higher success rate (89% vs. 80%). At the same time, applicants convicted of first-degree murder are granted greater reductions in parole ineligibility than are those with second-degree murder convictions. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)