Backgrounder

December 6, 2007

The McGuinty government is committed to safe and strong communities. That means being tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime, while helping to ensure Ontario's justice system has the capacity to meet today's evolving needs. The government is responding with an innovative and multi-faceted approach, which includes hiring 40 new full-time Crown attorneys and 15 new full-time support staff to be deployed across the province.

Specialized Crowns

Since 2003, the McGuinty government has added more than 150 Crown prosecutors to the system, including specialized Crowns with expertise in certain areas of criminal law. Specialized Crowns include:

• GTA Guns and Gangs Task Force - The McGuinty government has expanded the task force three times since October 2005 for a total of 72 specialized guns and gangs Crown prosecutors and their support staff. The task force is made up of police officers, Crown prosecutors and staff from the Victim/Witness Assistance Program who work together from the first day of an investigation.
• Anti-Gun Smuggling Crowns - Six new anti-gun smuggling Crowns announced by the Premier on July 27, 2007 will focus on tracking the movement of restricted or prohibited firearms into and across Ontario. These specialized Crowns will be available province-wide to work with police for better coordination and collaboration in investigating and prosecuting gun runners, smugglers and thieves.
• High Risk Offender Crowns - Eight new Crowns announced by the Premier on August 16, 2007 will work in every region of the province with victim service workers, case presentation specialists and support staff to advise police during investigations and streamline the complex high-risk offender designation process. This will cut down on the time it takes to start a dangerous or long-term offender hearing.

Added Court Resources

The government is doing all it can to help ensure Ontario's court system has the capacity to handle the increasing volume and complexity of cases.

• More judges and more justices of the peace - Since 2003 the McGuinty government has:
  • appointed 69 judges
  • appointed 113 justices of the peace
  • designated 29 per-diem retired justices of the peace to hear cases in municipal Provincial Offences Act courts.
• Modern, secure and accessible courts - The McGuinty government has taken a new and innovative approach by:
  • building major crime courtrooms at 361 University Avenue and 2201 Finch Avenue West in Toronto as part of a $51 million anti-guns and gangs strategy
  • committing more than $1 billion over five years to build new courthouses and improve existing infrastructure.

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