Free Webinar – A Critical Examination of the Application of Gladue Factors in Saskatchewan’s Lower Courts (CPD 390)

Qualifies for 1.0 CPD hour, all of which qualifies for Ethics

In this webinar, Sharmi Jaggi, discusses her study on the application of Gladue factors in Saskatchewan’s lower courts. The over-representation of Indigenous peoples in Saskatchewan’s criminal justice system is a critical issue of law and public policy. Reducing Indigenous people’s high rates of incarceration must start with understanding the processes used in their sentencing, and particularly why they receive relatively harsher sanctions than non-Indigenous offenders.

While the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in R v. Gladue has been praised for recognizing the ways that the criminal justice system has failed Indigenous people and requiring that judges consider the need for culturally appropriate sanctions and sentences, the courts have been unable to affect meaningful change in incarceration rates. This research study set out to understand why Indigenous sentencing is not living up to its promise by building on a contextual framework for understanding judicial decision-making. In order to do so, a four-month observational study of 118 sentencing decisions of judges in two provincial courts in Saskatchewan was conducted.

The findings of this study demonstrate that the practical constraints of the lower court’s institutional environment, cognitive constraints, and legislative complexity stifle the consistent application of s. 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code and the Gladue principles.

Presenter: Sharmi Jaggi, Ph.D.