December 15, 2023 – The Community Council is a criminal diversion program for Indigenous charged – adult and youth – who live in Toronto. The project takes Indigenous individuals out of the criminal justice system and brings them before members of the Indigenous community. The members of the Council are people who represent a cross-section of Toronto’s Indigenous community. The focus of the Community Council is to develop a plan by consensus that will allow the accused to take responsibility for their actions, address the root causes of the problem, and reintegrate him/her into the community in a positive way.
The concept of the Community Council is not new — it is the way justice was delivered in Indigenous communities in Central and Eastern Canada for centuries before the arrival of Europeans to North America and the way that disputes continue to be informally resolved in many reserve communities across the country. Alternative methods of dealing with criminal conduct by Indigenous accused have been implemented elsewhere, ALS was the first to implement it in an urban setting. The Community Council is a project that will allow the Indigenous community of Toronto to take a measure of control over the manner in which the criminal justice system deals with Indigenous accused.
The formal protocol between ALS and both Federal and Provincial Crown Attorneys’ office is to work together with the ALS’s Adult & Youth Criminal Court Workers to identify individuals who might want to participate in the program. ALS’s Criminal Court Workers are solely responsible for identifying and selecting Indigenous people to participate in the program. Once sentenced, the crown attorney has discretion to approve for diversion. This project was not designed for first-time offenders, it was designed for individuals in and out of the mainstream justice system.
The Community Council assists in creating a healthier and more connected community for Indigenous people in which to thrive. After attending ALS, individuals connect with caseworkers to complete their goals. The council encourages accused alternative paths that focus on their success and prevent them from further involvement with the criminal justice system. The Community Council Caseworkers work with participants by providing programming and referrals for their healing journey such as support with addiction challenges, anger management, Traditional Teachings, as well as connecting to an Indigenous community that believes in supporting each other’s growth.
Cassandra Fitzgibbon – Community Council Caseworker