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Bill C-15 Senate Committee Hearings: Transcripts and Video Clips

YouTube Channel Visit the Bill C-15 YouTube Channel to hear the opinions of expert witnesses!

Members of the Bill C-15 Senate Committee:

The Honourable Joan Fraser, Chair. The Honourable Pierre Claude Nolin, Deputy Chair
and The Honourable Senators: Angus, Baker, P.C., Campbell, Carignan, Cowan (ou Tardif), Joyal, P.C., LeBreton, P.C. (ou Comeau), Milne, Poulin, Rivest, Wallace, Watt.
Legislative Summary Read Bill C-15 (as passed by the House of Commons June 8, 2009)
Committee Proceedings Read the Senate Committee amendments
Bill C-15 home page Read the Senate Debate of Bill C-15 amendments Dec. 8, 2009
Status of Bill C-15 Bill C-15 Explained: What it means for cannabis producers and sellers
Bill C-15 Transcripts and Video Clips The Rules of Debate explained

Date / Transcripts Witnesses (Click on linked names to view VIDEO of their testimony)
October 8, 2009

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
The Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., M.P.,

Department of Justice Canada
Greg Yost

Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers
Phil Downes

Criminal Lawyers' Association
Howard L. Krongold

October 21, 2009

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Department of Justice Canada
Paul Saint-Denis, Senior Counsel, Criminal Law Policy Section.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Chief Superintendent Pierre Perron, Director General, Criminal Intelligence;
Superintendent Bill Malone, Director, Organized Crime.
Ottawa Police Service
Deputy Chief Sue O'Sullivan;
Inspector Jill Skinner.

October 22, 2009
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Statistics Canada - Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics
Lynn Barr-Telford, Director
Craig Grimes, Unit Head
Mia Dauvergne, Senior Analyst, Policing Services Program

Canadian Association of Crown Counsel
Jamie Chaffe, President.

October 28, 2009
4:00 PM - 07:00 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) Mary Price, Vice-President (by videoconference)

The Sentencing Project Marc Mauer, Executive Director (by videoconference)

Criminal Justice Policy Foundation Eric Sterling, President (by videoconference)

Sharon Dolovich, Professor, Georgetown Law, Georgetown University (by videoconference).

Vera Institute of Justice Michael Jacobson, Director (by videoconference)
October 29, 2009

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Darryl Plecas, RCMP University Research Chair, Director, Centre for Criminal Justice Research, University of the Fraser Valley
Elizabeth Sheehy, Professor, University of Ottawa
James Morton, Professor, Osgoode Hall Law School
Scott Wheildon, Lawyer
November 4, 2009

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Joëlle Roy, Association québécoise des avocats et avocates de la défense
Eugene Oscapella, Ottawa lawyer, Founder of Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy

Len Garis
, Surrey, BC Fire Chief
Peter Fassbender, Mayor of Langley, BC
Charles Momy, President, Canadian Police Association (union)
Ray Massicotte, Member, CPA Board of Directors
November 5, 2009
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Dr. Gabor Mate, Vancouver physician (downtown east side)

Wayne Skinner, Deputy Clinical Director, Addictions Program, CAMH

Read the CAMH submission to House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights May 2009
November 18, 2009
4:00 PM - 07:00 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript:
(.docx format)
(.doc format)

Dr. Brian Emerson, Health Officers Council of British Columbia

Chuck Doucette, Drug Prevention Network of Canada

Health Canada: Cathy Sabiston, Catherine MacLeod, Jane Hazel

Public Safety Canada: Daniel Sansfaçon, James Bonta, Guy Bourgon

Dept of Justice Canada: Elizabeth Hendy, Paul Wheatley, Kelly Morton-Bourgon
November 19, 2009
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript:
(.docx format)
(.doc format)

Benedikt Fischer, Professor, Simon Fraser University bio

Thomas Kerr, BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS

Neil Boyd, Professor, Simon Fraser University

Don Head, Commissioner, Correctional Service of Canada

November 25, 2009
4:00 PM - 07:00 PM EDT

transcript (HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Office of the Correctional Investigator
Howard Sapers, Correctional Investigator of Canada
Ivan Zinger, Executive Director and General Counsel

Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies Lucie Joncas, President ElizabethFry.ca

The John Howard Society of Canada Craig Jones, Executive Director JohnHoward.ca

John Conroy, Lawyer JohnConroy.com Line Beauchesne, Professor, University of Ottawa

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition David Bratzer, Canadian Representative, LEAP.cc
Read articles written by David Bratzer:
The Failure of Drug Prohibition: A Law Enforcement Perspective
Save our Police Budgets: Legalize and Tax Marijuana

November 26, 2009
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM EDT

transcript
(HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

Cato Institute
Glen Greenwald (by videoconference)

Drug Truth Network shows feat. Glenn Greenwald
Listen to Glenn Greenwald's presentation to the Cato Institute regarding 7 successful years of drug decriminalization in Portugal.

Part 1 (MP3) 04/08/09
Part 2 (MP3) 04/15/09

Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse
Michel Perron, Chief Executive Officer
Rita Notarandrea, Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Amy Porath-Waller, Senior Research and Policy Advisor
Rebecca Jesseman, Research and Policy Advisor

December 2, 2009
4:00 PM - 07:00 PM EDT

transcript
(HTML)

unrevised floor transcript
(Word doc)

BC Compassion Club Society website
Jeet-Kei Leung, Communications Coordinator

Beyond Prohibition Foundation
website
Kirk Tousaw, Executive Director

Vancouver Island Compassion Society website
Philippe Lucas, Founder/Executive Director

Canadian AIDS Society
Lynne Belle-Isle, Programs Consultant, National Programs

Department of Justice Canada
Paul Saint-Denis, Senior Counsel, Criminal Law Policy Section

December 3, 2009
10:45 AM - 12:45 PM EDT

transcript
(HTML)

unrevised floor transcript:
(.docx format)
(.doc format)


Clause-by-clause examination of Bill C-15

Read the Senate Committee amendments

  --- END OF WITNESS TESTIMONY ON BILL C-15 ---
December 8, 2009

Hansard (HTML)

Senate discussion of the amendments to Bill C-15
Committee Chair Sen. Joan Fraser explains amendments to Senators.
(A Senate vote on accepting the amendments was deferred until December 9, 2009 at 5:00 p.m.)
December 9, 2009
5:00 p.m
Senate vote on the amendments to Bill C-15
The Senate has accepted the proposed amendments by a vote of 49-43.
The bill will now go to Third Reading in the Senate, and then will be forwarded to the House of Commons.

IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT THE SENATE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:
The Senate Committee removed mandatory penalties associated with producing under 200 marijuana plants *only in certain circumstance*. The mandatory minimum sentences will apply (even for a single plant) if "Health and Safety Factors" are determined to be present

If there are "Health and Safety Factors" (e.g. growing in a rental property?!) then growing even a single cannabis plant, for the purposes of trafficking, would trigger a mandatory prison sentence of 9 months.

Health and Safety Factors
1. the accused used real property that belongs to a third party to commit the offence
2. the production constituted a potential security, health or safety hazard to children who were in the location where the offence was committed or in the immediate area
3. the production constituted a potential public safety hazard in a residential area
4. the accused placed or set a trap

>>>
Click here for a more detailed explanation <<<
 
YouTube Channel
MPs debate Bill C-15 on CKNW AM 980
Ed Fast (CON), Keith Martin (LIB), Libby Davies (NDP)
December 10, 2009
The so-called "gutting" of Bill C-15 by Liberal Senators

 


Youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mfc0YtUZuYk

Senate Committee Meeting - Dec. 3, 2009
Amendment to clause 3 of Bill C-15 put forward by Senator Joyal

YouTube Channel Watch more videos of expert witness testimony from the Senate Committee studying Bill C-15

This video contains evidence that debunks the Conservative claim of Liberal Senators "gutting" Bill C-15.

The two Conservative Senators who had questions about the amendment (Sen. Carignan and Sen. Wallace) both interpreted as making the bill "stronger." Not exactly the reaction you'd expect over an amendment that supposedly "gutted" the bill.

Don't believe the spin!
JUDGE FOR YOURSELF


Department of Justice press release Jan. 29, 2010
Excerpt: "The opposition has obstructed that agenda in the Senate, most notably by gutting Bill C-15 a bill proposing mandatory jail time for serious drug offences, and a key part of the governments efforts to fight organized crime."

Read the transcript of the
Dec. 3rd Senate committee meeting
.



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