Description
Book SynopsisBased on first-hand interviews with survivors, people who have committed offences, and others on the frontlines, Indictment puts the Canadian criminal justice system on trial and proposes a bold new vision of transformative justice.
#MeToo. Black Lives Matter. Decriminalize Drugs. No More Stolen Sisters. Stop Stranger Attacks.
Do we need more cops or to defund the police? Harm reduction or treatment? Tougher sentences or prison abolition? The debate about Canada’s criminal justice system has rarely been so polarized – or so in need of fresh ideas.
Indictment brings the heartrending and captivating stories of survivors and people who have committed offences to the forefront to help us understand why the criminal justice system is facing such an existential crisis.
Benjamin Perrin draws on his expertise as a lawyer, former top criminal justice advisor to the prime minister, and law clerk at the Supreme Cou
Table of Contents
1. “It Looked like Madness”: Trauma Part 1: The Criminal Justice System on Trial 2. “Set Up to Fail”: Criminalizing People Who Use Substances 3. “From Protectors to Villains”: Mental Health, Poverty & Homelessness 4. “Justice Is Not Blind”: Indigenous Peoples 5. "Thrown in with the Wolves”: Incarcerating Indigenous People 6. “The Usual Suspects”: Anti-Black Racism 7. “An Alien System of Law”: Suppression of Indigenous Justice 8. “Nobodies”: Victims of Crime 9. “Do No Harm or Injustice”: Secondary Victimization 10. “Perfectly Designed” Part 2: A New Vision for Criminal Justice 11. A New Vision 12. Healthy Kids and Communities: Preventing Childhood Trauma and Investing in Social Determinants of Justice 13. Decriminalizing People: Public Health Approaches to Substances, Mental Health, Poverty, and Homelessness 14. Transforming Trauma: Holistic Support for People Who Were Harmed and Caused Harm 15. Real Safety: Mobile 24/7 Non-Police Responses 16. Peacemaking and Accountability: Restorative Justice as the Primary Approach to Resolving Conflict 17. Rehabilitation and Healing: Abolition of Traditional Prisons and Jails 18. Indigenous Justice 19. "New and Better Stories" Acknowledgments Methodology Content Notes Mental Health and Counselling Resources for Readers Notes Index
