By BRIAN LILLEY PARLIAMENTARY BUREAU
OTTAWA - Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff says he will reverse some of the tough-on-crime legislation he voted for as a way to save money, including a move that would let criminals out of prison earlier.
Speaking at a campaign event in Hamilton, Ont., Ignatieff said a Liberal government would review several amendments to the criminal code that are expected to drive up costs by putting more people behind bars.
"We're gonna review all of these. There will be substantial savings," Ignatieff said.
Bill C-25, also known as the Truth in Sentencing Act, was passed in 2010 with the support of the Liberals. Ignatieff himself voted for the bill that instructs judges to stop giving automatic two-for-one credits to convicts for the time they spent in custody before trial.
Shortly after the bill was passed Amin Mohammed Durrani, a convicted member of the so-called Toronto 18 terrorist group, was sentenced to just one extra day in jail.
Durrani had spent three years, seven months and 18 days in custody before trial. The judge in that case gave Durrani 7 1/2 years credit for that time and ordered him released one day after his conviction.
Bill C-59, passed with the help of the Bloc Quebecois but opposed by the Liberals and NDP, eliminated accelerated parole for convicts. Bill S-10, which was not passed, was an attempt to set mandatory minimums for marijuana grow-ops. Critics, which included the Liberals, said the bill would put too many your people behind bars.
The Liberals have been highly critical of the Conservative government's tough-on-crime agenda, claiming it will require the building of "U.S.-style mega-prisons."
Ignatieff has hinted that the plans for new prisons should be cancelled but has not clearly stated that a Liberal government would do so.
The Conservatives have often tried to portray the Liberals as soft on crime, lately pointing to a former judge and now a Liberal candidate in Alberta who has a history of handing out light sentences.
On Friday the Conservatives promised that if re-elected they would bundle several of their crime bills together and pass them within 100 days.
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