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New Gladue reporter writers promises to chip away case backlogs

THUNDER BAY -- The addition of three new Gladue report writers in Northern Ontario will have an impact on how many Aboriginal people are in custody, says the executive director of Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services.
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FILE -- Celina Reitberger, executive director for Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services. (tbnewswatch.com file photograph)

THUNDER BAY -- The addition of three new Gladue report writers in Northern Ontario will have an impact on how many Aboriginal people are in custody, says the executive director of Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services.

Thunder Bay, Sioux Lookout and Timmins will each receive a new Gladue report writer with funding from Legal Aid Ontario. Thunder Bay will now have two people who can write the pre-sentence reports that a judge uses to consider an Aboriginal offender’s background.

“Some people think that Gladue is a get-out-of-jail-free card and we argue very strongly that it is not because of the cultural alienation that Aboriginal people feel with the mainstream justice system,” said Celina Reitberger, executive director for Nishnawbe-Aski Legal Services.
“When they go into the system it is a very foreign place to them and they want to get out as quickly as possible,” said Reitberger.

Because there has only been one Gladue report writer in the city many cases have been delayed as that writer has had to prioritize the more difficult cases.

That led to many people waiving their right to a Gladue report and wanting to plead guilty to get the process over with in a timely manner.
Reitberger said they want to have Gladue reports done at the bail level of the court process because many Aboriginal people have troubles with sureties and release conditions they find too difficult.

“When they breach them they are back in jail so they’ve never been convicted of a substantive offence but they are doing time,” she said.

“The Gladue report can get people started on their healing path earlier if it’s used at the bail level and if it’s used at the sentencing level, the hope is that we find alternatives to incarceration. There just aren’t enough jails.”

Reitberger said the positions in Timmins and Thunder Bay have been filled but they are still looking in Sioux Lookout.





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