Nunavik Detainees Class Action Lawsuit Authorized

The Nunavik detainees’ class action lawsuit alleging long detention periods for Nunavummiut in police custody awaiting court hearings will be heard in a Quebec court.

Lead plaintiff, Michael Carrier, alleged in a class action lawsuit lodged against the government of Quebec that he and other Nunavummiut have been held for excessively long periods of time after being detained by police and awaiting a court hearing. Nunavik is a territory in the north of Quebec with a population of 12,090, according to the complaint. The plaintiff says that the rights of himself and those in his community to timely bail hearing are systematically violated.

In fact, according to Nunatsiaq.com, a 2016 report by the province’s ombudsman found that Nunavik community members who are detained face up to 14 days between arrest and their hearing. One of the main issues is the lack of air transportation that would fly detainees to court facilities.

“Anyone arrested and detained in Nunavik should be entitled to the full protection of the Law, in the same way as all Canadian and Quebec litigants; this is not the case,” stated the complaint.

Carrier contends that the long waiting periods are due to a lack of facilities in the region and violate members’ rights under the Criminal Code, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. The Nunavik detainee class action lawsuit accuses the government of Québec of failing to provide adequate court facilities that would enable Nunavik community members to be detained for shorter periods of time.

“Unless the accused renounces to it, the Bail Hearing must imperatively be held within a period of three clear days, in order to protect his rights and to avoid any undue extension of his detention,” states the complaint. “In Nunavik, this delay is systematically violated due to the indifference and negligence of the Defendant.”

The Nunavik detainee class action lawsuit is seeking damages on behalf of other Nunavummiut who have been held for more than three days for a hearing.

“Dozens of people who are charged each year in this territory are illegally detained for periods that surpass by several days, even weeks, the period of three clear days without having the lawfulness of their detention duly examined by a justice of the peace,” contends the complaint.

In recent legal news, Quebec Superior Court Judge Gary DD Morrison agreed to certify the proposed Nunavik detainees class action lawsuit finding that the alleged delays “are a manifestation of the culture of complacency” that “must be addressed.”

The lead plaintiff in the Nunavik detainees class action lawsuit alleged that he was taken into police custody on July 5, 2018. He alleged that he was then taken into custody and remained there for 10 days while waiting for court hearings before being sent home. The plaintiff contends that approximately 800 members in the Nunavik community are held for similarly excessive periods.

“The forced displacement over thousands of kilometres in inhuman conditions of detention, the language barrier and the distance from family and community are all factors that increase the feeling of abandonment, loneliness, helplessness, anxiety and desperation related to the illegal detention suffered by the plaintiff and members of the group,” alleged the complaint.

The newly certified class action lawsuit seeks to represent those in Nunavik who have been charged with a criminal offence between Sept. 4, 2015 and the present who have been detained for longer than “three clear days” without a bail hearing. Nunatsiaq.com also reports that, at the time of the class action lawsuit, approximately 2,400 Nunavik residents could be included as Class Members.

In the order certifying the proposed Nunavik detainees class action lawsuit, Judge Morrison pointed out three lawsuits related to similar issues that had been approved in the province.

“The Supreme Court of Canada has, on more than one occasion, concluded that the Canadian criminal justice system has tragically failed this country’s Indigenous peoples,” points out the order. “The Court cannot conclude at the authorization phase that such is the case in this present matter … but it is too important an issue to be ignored.”

The Nunavik detainees class action lawsuit is seeking damages amounting to $50,000 for each Class Member.

Have you or a loved one been affected by an excessively long detention period? Tell us what happened in the comment section below!

The lead plaintiff and certified Class Members are represented by Victor Chauvelot and Louis-Nicholas Coupal of Coupal Chauvelot, S.A.

The Nunavik Detainees Class Action Lawsuit is Carrier v. Attorney General of Québec, Case No. 500-06-000943-181, in the Province of Québec District of Montréal, Canada.

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