Canada. Royal Commission on the Law of Insanity as a Defence in Criminal Cases : The Royal Commission On The Law Of Insanity As A Defence In Criminal Cases was established under Order in Council P.C. 289, 2 March 1954 under Part I of the Inquiries Act (R.S.C., 1952, c.154) and on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice. The Commission was mandated to inquire into and report upon the question whether the criminal law of Canada relating to the defence of insanity should be amended in any respect and, if so, in what manner and to what extent. The commissioners were James Chalmers McRuer, Chairman; Gustave Desrochers, Helen Kinnear, Robert Orville Jones and Joseph Harris. The secretary was R. Noel Dickson.
In the early 1950s, under the Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1927, c.36) provisions pertaining to the defence of insanity, an insane person was considered incapable of committing a criminal offence. If insanity was established in a criminal case, then the accused was found not guilty by reason of insanity. In these circumstances, a Lieutenant Governor's warrant was used to commit the criminally insane to an institution. They remained in it until they were considered fit to be released. Further, according to the law, an individual could not be found guilty of a crime if he or she was unfit to stand trial because of mental illness. Under these circumstances, the person was held in custody until he or she recovered sufficiently to understand the nature of legal proceedings against him or her.
On 2 February 1953, An Act Respecting the Criminal Law (Bill No. 93) was referred by the House of Commons to a Special Committee. The committee recommended in its final report, dated 1 May 1953, that the Governor in Council appoint a royal commission, or that a Joint Parliamentary Committee be established to consider and report upon the criminal law of Canada relating to the defence of insanity.
On 12 January 1954, a Joint Committee of the Senate and the House of Commons was appointed, but the Criminal Code provisions relating to the defence of insanity were so complex, that they were not referred to it. Instead, the federal Minister of Justice decided that a public inquiry should be held to determine whether or not the criminal law relating to the defence of insanity in criminal cases should be amended (2-3 Eliz. II, c.51, section 16, 1953-1954; and Order in Council P.C. 289, 2 March 1954).
In 1991, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Section of the Criminal Code, which required a person, not guilty by reason of insanity, to be automatically and indefinitely confined to an institution, was unconstitutional. In response to this ruling, the federal government made an amendment to the Criminal Code, in December 1991, requiring periodic review of each case. By virtue of these amendments, the courts have the following options for dealing with a person acquitted of a crime because of a mental disorder: absolute discharge, discharge under court-imposed conditions or detention in custody in a hospital under court-imposed conditions.
Hearings of the commission were held in all provincial capitals as well as in Montreal, Ottawa and Vancouver from 29 March 1954 to 12 April 1955. The commission filed 22 submissions. RG33-130 General Inventory
