The electronic bracelets to protect victims of domestic violence will begin to be put in place at the end of the spring 2022 in Quebec. The measure, covered extensively by Park-Extension News via our interviews with Melpa Kamateros from Shield of Athena, was passed as Bill 24 amending the Quebec Correctional System Act on Thursday the 17th of March 2022.
The deployment of the electronic wristband system will take place this year as part of a pre-project aimed at defendants tried at the Quebec City courthouse and inmates at the Quebec Detention Facility. It will then extend to the entire province by the end of 2023. “It is one more gesture to continue to make Quebec a society that rejects violence against women, and a precursor in reducing the risk of recidivism for dangerous men.” said Geneviève Guilbault, Minister of Public Security of Quebec.
The objective of the electronic bracelet is to offer victims of domestic violence a greater sense of security, but also to trigger a rapid police intervention protocol. With its adoption, Bill 24 made Quebec the seventh jurisdiction in the world to set up such a program, according to Ms. Guilbaut’s remarks during the tabling of bill, at the beginning of February. It then planned to put 500 bracelets into service.
The implementation of the bracelet system requires the consent of the victim, who has a geolocation device on her. When the perpetrator of domestic violence approaches the victim, the device sends an alert signal to the police, who then must make sure to secure the victim. The bracelet may be imposed on criminals by judges, but also by the Quebec Commission on Conditional Liberation or the directors of detention facilities.
