Corrections defends Bernardo’s privacy as lawyer calls for transfer to be rescinded

The Correctional Service of Canada is defending Paul Bernardo’s privacy rights, as the federal public safety minister says the country is owed an explanation for why he was moved.

Marco Mendicino says Canadians deserve to know why the serial rapist and killer was transferred from a maximum-security prison to medium security, given the matter is now public.

Fallout from Bernardo’s transfer has been echoing through Parliament Hill, Ontario’s legislature and across different police associations.

Bernardo is serving a life sentence for the murder, kidnapping and torture of teenage girlsKristen French and Leslie Mahaffy from the early 1990s.

He was also convicted of manslaughter in the death of Tammy Homolka, who died after being drugged and sexually assaulted. Tammy was the 15-year-old sister of Bernardo’s then-wife Karla Homolka, who was released after serving 12 year for her role in the crimes against French and Mahaffy.

Bernardo also admitted to sexually assaulting 14 other women.

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The independent federal correctional service is reviewing the transfer after widespread backlash, saying in a statement earlier in the week that while it understands Canadians want answers, it was “restricted by the law” in what it can say.

Corrections spokesman Kevin Antonucci said Bernardo was transferred as a result of a review into his security classification, which is required every two years.

He underlined that Bernardo poses no risk to public safety and the Quebec prison he now resides in has the same security perimeter as a maximum-security institution. The prison specializes in the treatment of violent sex offenders.

Speaking generally, Antonucci said the criteria for transfers and security classifications are based on factors like a prisoner’s escape risk, as stipulated under the law governing corrections.

What prison authorities are allowed to disclose, including to victims, is outlined in corrections law and in the federal Privacy Act.

Antonucci said Friday that under privacy law, the correctional service cannot disclose an inmate’s personal information without their consent, “except in specific circumstances.”

He said considerations include the sensitivity of the information as well as the likelihood and level of “injury relative to the benefits of the disclosure to the public.”

Lawyer Tim Danson calls for transfer to be rescinded

Tim Danson, the lawyer for the French and Mahaffy families, released a letter written to Commissioner Anne Kelly in which he calls for Bernardo’s transfer to be rescinded.

In the six-page letter, Danson says the families were “shocked” by the news of Bernardo’s transfer, which he claims was made “without explanation or advance notice.”

Danson says the families were told of the transfer on the day it happened and that he was not notified prior to it happening, contrary to a release from corrections officials.

“Justice must be carried out in a transparent manner – not in secret,” he writes.

Late Friday, Antonucci confirmed victims’ families were notified of the transfer the day it happened.

“One of the considerations for not providing sooner notifications was the safety and security of the staff who had to conduct the transfer … given it was publicly known that the offender was located at Millhaven Institution.”

Danson goes on to say that while principles of rehabilitation apply to 99 per cent of federal prisoners, inmates such as Bernardo “are beyond rehabilitation.”

“Respectfully, I am not interested in abstract theoretical discussions about possible rehabilitation of someone who can never be rehabilitated,” he writes.

“Absent a compelling explanation, it would appear that CSC is trying to assist Mr. Bernardo with his parole eligibility by cascading him through the system from maximum to medium and then minimum security and then out the door on parole.”

He ends by making an urgent plea to have the transfer order rescinded and have Bernardo returned to Millhaven in order to face the “full consequences of his sadistic and cowardly acts.”