(Vancouver) BCCLA executive board member Megan Vis-Dunbar presents today in Whitehorse, Yukon, to a citizens‟ group there opposing proposed civil forfeiture legislation. The proposed law would make it easy for the territorial government to seize the property of private citizens alleged to be involved in criminal activity, even without a criminal conviction. Vis- Dunbar, a Vancouver lawyer, has first-hand experience working with clients subjected to a similar law in British Columbia.

“The penalties are just as severe for individuals as criminal sanctions are in many cases,” said Robert Holmes, President of the BCCLA. “For government to say „We‟re taking your home and your car, even though we don‟t have enough proof to convict you of any crime,‟ seems to
undermine the basic understanding Canadians have of fairness and their rights.”

The group “Yukoners for Civil Freedom” has now collected more than 1,000 signatures opposing the law. The current population of Whitehorse is just over 25,000 people.

“Before a citizen is punished, the government must prove that person‟s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” said Holmes. “This golden rule has been in place internationally for hundreds of years for good reason – the police and government are not infallible. The government taking an innocent person‟s home and selling it could be an awful, and very possible, consequence of this policy change.”

The B.C. Civil Liberties Association has a long history of opposing civil forfeiture legislation in B.C. and Canada, including intervening in the infamous Chatterjee v. Attorney General of Ontario case at the Supreme Court of Canada in 2009, where the Court upheld the use of this type of law as consistent with the constitution.