B.C. COURT SENTENCES STIFF, JUDGE SAYS

Idea That Criminals Here Have It Easier Is A Myth, Provincial Court
Top Judge Says

The idea that criminals in B.C. receive lower sentences than they do
in the rest of the country is a myth, says the chief judge of the
Provincial Court, Hugh Stansfield.

Speaking to a Surrey Chamber of Commerce meeting on Wednesday,
Stansfield -- appointed chief judge July 1 -- said the latest
available statistics show that B.C.'s courts usually give out heavier
sentences than the national average.

"The latest statistics available are for 2003, but in Canada 35 per
cent of persons convicted of a criminal offence were sent to jail. In
B.C. the average was 39.8 per cent," said Stansfield.

This compared to Alberta, where 35.8 per cent of convicted persons
went to jail, Ontario with 41 per cent and Quebec, where only 27 per
cent were jailed.

In terms of sentences imposed for property crime, the national
average was 40 per cent, while B.C.'s rate is 48 per cent, said Stansfield.

The chief judge was responding to claims from the Surrey chamber that
B.C. imposes lesser sentences than other provinces, that courts here
are part of a revolving door system in which criminals land back on
the street quicker than they should and that lenient sentencing makes
B.C. an attractive haven for criminals.

Stansfield wouldn't agree with any of these propositions and blamed
the media for the public perception that courts here are too lenient.

"I do believe some of the public's perception of criminal sentencing
is from a lack of understanding of how the system works. This
perception comes from the media which focuses on the most notorious
and unusual cases and tends not to focus on the vast majority of the
100,000 cases heard in courts," said Stansfield.

Any feeling that courts in Surrey are too lenient compared to other
areas are unsubstantiated too, he said.

"In 2004, 42 per cent of people convicted in Surrey spent some time
in jail [38 per cent spent actual jail time, while 4.4 per cent were
held in jail until trial] and that's in keeping with provincial and
national averages," he said.

As for B.C. being attractive to criminals because "we've got lousy
judges doing a lousy job. I say we've got good judges who do a good job."

He was questioned about the courts' attitude to marijuana-growing
operations that are causing widespread concern across the province.

"There seems to be a disconnect between the way the lower courts and
the higher courts deal with them," said Stansfield.

"Grow ops are a huge concern in the community ... the court of appeal
today is leaning towards conditional sentences. I know a Surrey judge
imposed an 18-month jail sentence for a first offence. It will be
interesting to see what happens on appeal," he said.

But the courts' attitude can change depending on social circumstances
- -- he used the example of judges getting tough with offenders
involved in home invasions -- and this could be the case with persons
convicted of growing marijuana, he said.