The province’s latest anti-gang law could breach the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, says the vice-president of Alberta’s Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association.
“It’s problematic in a number of respects,” city lawyer Deborah Hatch said after Bill 42 was introduced in the legislature last week. “It captures a whole lot of people here and a whole lot of activity.”
If passed, the law would allow police to remove suspected criminals from bars and clubs, and give establishments the right to collect personal information about their customers to share with police and the government.
The bill covers people involved in a range of criminal activity, including prostitution, and empowers officers to act based on information gathered from reliable sources or “a police officer’s good faith belief that a person is associated with a gang.”
Read more in The Edmonton Journal.