Section 84 releases: profile of federal indigenous men offenders

Research Highlights: Indigenous men who participate in Section 84 releases have a unique profile compared to non-Section 84 Indigenous men.

Indigenous communities play an integral role in the rehabilitation and reintegration of Indigenous offenders following incarceration, especially through Section 84 releases.^{Footnote 1} An evaluation completed by the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC)^{Footnote 2} indicates that Section 84 releases are associated with lower rates of failure on conditional release and cost-effective. Although results indicate positive public safety outcomes, little is known about the profile of this subset of offenders. Therefore, this study explored the profile of federal men offenders who have participated in Section 84 releases relative to men who did not participate in Section 84 releases.

In total, 4,780 federal Indigenous men offenders were released on conditional release^{Footnote 3} between April 1, 2012 and March 31, 2017.^{Footnote 4} First Nations men accounted for 68% of the release cohort, while 27% were Métis and 4% were Inuit. Analyses by Indigenous group and region of supervision were conducted, when possible.

Twenty-three percent (n = 1,084) of Indigenous men offenders participated in Section 84 releases during the study period. A greater proportion of Inuit offenders (34%) were released under Section 84 when compared with First Nations or Métis offenders (26% and 12%, respectively). Offenders in the Prairie and Pacific regions were most likely to participate in a Section 84 release (26%) while those in the Atlantic region were least likely (11%).

In comparison to non-Section 84 Indigenous men, those who participated in Section 84 releases were:

More Likely To

• be released on discretionary release;
• be serving their first federal sentence;
• be classified as minimum security prior to release;
• be engaged in their correctional plan;
• participate in Indigenous interventions Pathways, Elder reviews, traditional healing plans;
• be released from or previously incarcerated in a Healing Lodge;
• have an Aboriginal Community Development Officer or other Indigenous staff assigned to their case management team;
• have completed Indigenous programming.

Equally Likely To

• be single;
• be serving a sentence of three years or less;
• have committed a violence offence;
• have a responsivity issue;
• have an identified substance misuse issue;
• have completed non-Indigenous programming.

Less Likely To

• a residency condition for their release;
• a long term supervision order;
• a high static factor or high dynamic factor rating at release –ratings were similar at intake;
• been a member of a Security Threat Group.

Regardless of Indigenous group or region, the same pattern emerged when comparing section 84 participants with those who did not participate. Inuit offenders who participated in Section 84, however, were less likely to be on discretionary release, be at minimum security at release or to have participated in Indigenous interventions/programs than First Nations or Métis Section 84 participants.

Section 84 Indigenous men offenders were involved in Indigenous programs and services and were deemed a lower risk at release than non-participants. Future research will explore post-release success of these two groups.

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Prepared by: Shanna Farrell MacDonald