New wrongful conviction review commission could reduce delays, but justice experts hope for bigger change

Justice experts say proposed federal legislation that would create a new process to review potential wrongful convictions could benefit groups of people overrepresented in the Canadian justice system — if it's done properly.

Federal Justice Minister David Lametti announced Thursday he's introducing legislation to create a commission to review miscarriages of justice.

This would replace the current process — which gave the minister final say on handling potential wrongful convictions stemming from federal laws and regulations — and hopefully lead to quicker outcomes. The commission would also be independent of the justice ministry.

Nicole Porter, a criminal consultant with N.A Porter and Associates and a social justice advocate, hopes the new system will help people who are wrongfully convicted transition back into community.

"Some of these people have been institutionalized their entire lives and they've known nothing but prison," Porter said, referencing two Saulteaux sisters who have been in the prison system for almost 30 years but claim they are innocent.

Porter worked on a pro bono independent forensic analysis of the 1994 murder conviction of Odelia Quewezance, 51, and Nerissa Quewezance, 48, from Keeseekoose First Nation, located about 230 kilometres northeast of Regina.

The pair were arrested in 1993 for the murder of Anthony Joseph Dolff, a 70-year-old farmer near Kamsack, Sask., and convicted of second-degree murder along with another person who was a youth at the time and confessed to the killing.

Their defence team is arguing for their conditional release while their cases are investigated by the federal Justice Ministry's review process as a potential wrongful conviction, which can take years.

"How our world works now is way different in comparison to what it was than it was 30 years ago, so providing necessary supports ... is really a necessity," Porter said.

Once the new commission is established, "existing applicants would be given the opportunity to consent to the transfer of their application to the new commission," federal Ministry of Justice spokesperson Geneviève Groulx said in an email.

If they choose not to transfer and their application is already past an assessment stage, then the old process would continue, with the minister making a decision, Groulx wrote.

Porter said in the sisters' cases, their decision could rely on how long it takes for the commission to become active.

"If they've already been involved in the review for a few years, by the time this happens then it might be in their best interest to stick it out."

LISTEN | Federal Justice Minister David Lametti and a wrongful conviction expert, advocate on proposed review commission: