French Canada's first non-profit Pardon Centre opens in montreal

MONTREAL The first ever walkin pardon centre catering to the needs of both French and English speaking Canada, has opened in Montreal. Established to become an education and resource site, the National Pardon Centre opened its doors at 2000 Peel Street, suite 650 on October 1, 2002. The new organization assists individuals in removing past criminal offences from public record, and makes the process of obtaining Canadian pardons and U.S. entry waivers easier for both French and English speaking Canadians.

"The National Pardon Centre was established in Montreal out of a desire to help people in a practical way, by removing barriers from their lives," said Director, Michael Ashby, a native of Montreal. "It is a service that needed development in an efficient and economical manner in French Canada," he continued, "and we recognized a need to educate people regarding the risks associated with having old criminal charges remain on their records. For instance, as U.S. border crossing regulations become increasingly strict, many Canadians are having difficulty entering the U.S.A. It's a problem that can be financially devastating for people whose work requires them to cross the border"

Canadians were recently given a shocking example of tightened border security. A 32 year old Quebec resident was released from five weeks in a U.S. jail, after he allegedly crossed the border illegally, to buy cheaper gas. The man had a criminal record (he was fined at age 19 for breaking windows and being in possession of stolen property). Before being released from U.S. custody, the accused Quebecer had to post $5,000.00 bail. He will have to return to the U.S. for trial.

Any criminal conviction, no matter how minor and regardless of how long ago the offence occurred, becomes a part of the convicted person's criminal record and is kept on file at the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC). Ashby says the fact that a person has a criminal record can be made available to anyone conducting a criminal records check, (including the FBI, which is linked by computer to CPIC) and can hinder everything from foreign travel to volunteer work and educational or employment opportunities.

"A criminal record can severely limit an individual's employment prospects. Any government position, anything working with children, anything in the banking, accounting, legal, medical or dental professions%u037E and a flag beside your name during a criminal records check will prevent you from getting that job," said Ashby. "At that point, it doesn't matter what you did. You have a criminal charge somewhere in your past and that's it. End of discussion. That's not just policy in many cases. It's law," he added. The law that governs pardons in this country, the Criminal Records Act, states that only the National Parole Board has the authority to issue, grant or deny pardons in Canada. But Ashby compares the process of an individual filing his or her own application to trying to do one's own income taxes, only in this case, the process is spread out over a two year period, and involves dealing with several different government agencies, rather than just one.

"At the National Pardon Centre, we can manage the whole process on the client's behalf, thereby ensuring the application is processed accurately, efficiently and in the most expedient manner possible," he said. Former Canadian Solicitor General (under Pierre Trudeau) Warren Allmand, was directly involved in developing the pardon program in the early 1970's. He sits on the advisory board of the National Pardon Centre. Cofounder and President of the National Pardon Centre, Nicole Levesque, holds a Master's Degree in the management of nonprofit organizations, with an undergraduate degree in criminology and sociology. She has worked in the Jamaican prison system, and in England, resettling previously incarcerated people. Her experience has taught her the advantages that come with giving people a clean start.

"I've learned that the more opportunities and the more possibilities people have in their lives, the less likely they are to recommit an offence. I think our program is excellent for that. You've made your mistakes. You've proven to be a good citizen, and stayed out of trouble. The government is granting this opportunity (for pardons), so I think people should take advantage of it," Levesque said.

The effect of a pardon, once granted, is that a person's criminal record is thereafter kept separate and apart from other criminal records. Any information pertaining to the pardoned individual's conviction is removed from the CPIC, meaning that any search of the CPIC will not show that that person has had a criminal record. It will also not divulge the existence of a pardon, as this would reveal that a conviction had occurred.

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