Bill S-221 explained in plain English
An Act to amend the Criminal Code (exception to mandatory minimum sentences for manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death)
Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 41st Parliament, 1st Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
Bill S-221 proposes to amend the Criminal Code to allow courts to depart from mandatory minimum sentences for manslaughter or criminal negligence causing death involving a firearm, if the victim abused the offender.
Bill S-221 proposes to amend the Criminal Code to create an exception to mandatory minimum sentences for specific offences where a firearm is used. The offences are manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death. This exception would apply if a court is satisfied that the victim had a history of physically, sexually, or psychologically abusing the offender. In such cases, the mandatory minimum sentence would not apply, and the sentence could be imprisonment for life.
- It proposes to create an exception to mandatory minimum sentences for manslaughter using a firearm.
- It proposes to create an exception to mandatory minimum sentences for criminal negligence causing death using a firearm.
- It would allow a court to deviate from the mandatory minimum sentence if it finds that the victim had a pattern of physical, sexual, or psychological abuse against the offender.
- In cases where the exception applies, the sentence could be life imprisonment.
- Individuals charged with manslaughter using a firearm.
- Individuals charged with criminal negligence causing death using a firearm.
- The courts in Canada that impose sentences for these offences.
- Victims of these offences, in the context of determining sentence exceptions.
- The bill proposes to add a condition under which a court can depart from a mandatory minimum sentence for specific offences.
- The bill proposes to give courts the discretion to impose a sentence other than the mandatory minimum if specific criteria related to victim abuse are met.
- The bill was given first reading on June 13, 2013.
- The bill deals with sentencing for specific Criminal Code offences. It proposes an exception to mandatory minimum sentences, not new penalties.
- The bill does not specify what constitutes a 'pattern of conduct' for victim abuse.
- The bill does not define the exact threshold for 'physical, sexual or psychological abuse'.
- The bill applies only to cases where a firearm is used in the commission of the offence.
Modifies sections 220 and 236 to introduce a new subsection (a.1) that provides an exception to the mandatory minimum sentence for manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death when a firearm is used, if the victim abused the offender.
Source: Sections 1 and 2 of Bill S-221, which amend sections 220 and 236 of the Criminal Code.
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textParliamentary Process
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
On June 13, 2013, the Senate tabled committee reports, introduced Bill S-221, debated various issues including national defence and human rights, and advanced Bill C-60 to committee.
This artifact records the proceedings of the Senate on June 13, 2013. During this sitting, various reports were tabled and discussed, including those from Senate committees on Aboriginal Peoples, Transport and Communications, and Banking, Trade and Commerce. Several bills were introduced and received first reading, including Bill S-221, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (exception to mandatory minimum sentences for manslaughter and criminal negligence causing death). The Senate also engaged in debate and question period on a range of topics, including human rights, national defence spending, and international trade. A significant portion of the sitting involved a debate and vote on an amendment to Bill C-15 regarding the National Defence Act. Bill C-60, the Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, was read a second time and referred to committee.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced