As one of their final insulting acts involving the Canada's criminal justice system, the Conservative government served notice that it would not be renewing the contract of the prison ombusdman, Howard Sapers. Now that the Trudeau Liberals have taken power, many of us who are concerned about the rising numbers of women, indigenous people and older Canadians within our prisons are urging the government to reconsider removing Sapers. We are also urging the government to repeal many of the alarming pieces of legislation that affect the rights of Canadians who come into conflict with the law. I wrote this profile of him two years ago for Simon Fraser University's AQ magazine. Here is an abridged version. On April 14, 1971, Kingston Penitentiary was rocked by a four-day riot that resulted in the deaths of two inmates and the near physical destruction of the prison. Canadians watched in horror as the inmates held six guards hostage. They held a news conference ...
More than a million served!