Street Racing: Mandatory Minimums, Maximums, and Limiting Judicial Discretion through Legislature

• In Event: Judicial Discretion in Canada and the Effects of Legislative Constraints on Sentencing

Abstract

In 2009 the Conservative government, under Bill C-19, introduced five provisions to the Canadian Criminal Code specifically for street racing that carry higher maximum penalties than the existing provisions of dangerous driving and criminal negligence. At the same time, Parliament proposed Bill C-9, making amendments to section 742 of the Criminal Code. Under subsection 742.1(c), any offender convicted of an offence that is prosecuted by indictment and carries either a maximum term of 14 years or life imprisonment, cannot receive a conditional sentence. The Conservative government, with their ‘tough on crime’ agenda, was taking a holistic approach to criminal law reform by proposing both bills together. Collectively, these amendments limit judicial discretion by eliminating the use of conditional sentences in the case of street racing resulting in injury or death. Where judges previously had the flexibility to administer conditional sentences for these crimes, by raising the mandatory maximum sentences, conditional sentences are no longer an option for those convicted of four of the five new street racing offences. As a qualitative study, this paper analyzes a case set prior to and after the implementation of Bill C-19, evaluating the way in which legislature attempts to limit judicial discretion.

Author

• Roxanne Maria Bilski, University of Guelph