N.S. top court: judges must consider systemic racism when sentencing Black offenders

Justice Anne S. Derrick said inquiring about the systemic issues facing African Nova Scotians could help reduce the levels of incarceration in that community

HALIFAXtoday \  Canadian Press

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia’s top court has ruled that trial judges must consider the historical disadvantages and systemic racism facing Black offenders when issuing sentences.

Justice Anne S. Derrick, on behalf of a five-judge Court of Appeal panel, said inquiring about the systemic issues facing African Nova Scotians could help reduce the levels of incarceration in that community.

The Appeal Court ruling follows a change to the Criminal Code in 1996 requiring judges during sentencing to consider the particular circumstances of Indigenous offenders.

The ruling released last week involved the case of Rakeem Rayshon Anderson, a Black man who was found guilty on five firearm-related charges in June 2019. Police had found a .22-calibre revolver in his waistband following a traffic stop in November 2018.

Provincial court Chief Judge Pamela Williams in February 2020 handed Anderson a conditional sentence of two years less a day, along with two years’ probation. She said her sentencing decision was supported by the results of a race and culture assessment on Anderson.

The Crown, which had appealed Williams’s decision, had said it wasn’t looking to overturn the sentence but wanted guidance on the lower court judge’s ruling.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 23, 2021.

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

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