REGINA -- Police in Saskatchewan can now disclose information about anyone with a violent or abusive past, after the province enacted Clare’s Law on Monday.
The Interpersonal Violence Disclosure Protocol (Clare’s law) Act allows police protocol to disclose information about someone’s violent past, to intimate partners whose safety may be at risk.
Clare’s Law sets out a framework and standard process for disclosing information. People can apply for this information if they believe they are at risk. Police can also notify at risk people.
Saskatchewan is the first jurisdiction in Canada to put this legislation into effect.
“If this legislation helps protect even just one person, it’s a success,” said Justice Minister Don Morgan.
The new protocol was created in collaboration with the Provincial Association of Transition Houses (PATHS) and the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police (SACP).
“By encouraging law enforcement agencies to share risk information with potential victims and giving an opportunity for those at risk, and, the people who care for them, to ask for information about the past history of violent behavior of a new or potential partner, Clare’s Law takes a proactive approach to preventing intimate partner violence,” Jo-Anne Dusel, the Executive Director of PATHS, said.
