Reforming Gladue: A Call for Judicial Accountability in Sentencing Indigenous Offenders
The legacy of the Supreme Court of Canada’s 1999 decision in R v Gladue remains part of Canadian law today. The “Gladue principles” arise from section 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code, which was enacted to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in Canadian prisons.Despite the adoption of section 718.2(e), Indigenous people remain drastically overrepresented in Canadian prisons. This demonstrates the need for meaningful reform.
Sentencing of Indigenous Offenders in Canada
Section 718.2(e) was added to the Criminal Code to remedy the overrepresentation of Indigenous peoples in criminal custody. Section 718.2(e) provides that “all available sanctions, other than imprisonment, that are reasonable in the circumstances and consistent with the harm done to victims or to the community should be considered for all offenders, with particular attention to the circumstances of Aboriginal offenders”.
