Policy positions endorsed by The John Howard Society of Canada are the product of ongoing and in-depth research into the causes and consequences of crime, informed by the “effective, just and humane” principles and values for which the Society stands.

All of the research we rely upon is in the public domain.

The JHSC has close relationships with scholars, academics, public servants, policy makers, former correctional officials, and specialists from all around the English-speaking world who readily share their research materials. As a consequence, the Society has accumulated a library of peer-reviewed best evidence on correctional and criminal justice policy.

The Executive Director of JHSC brings together this evidence on any given criminal justice issue in order to present to committees of the House of Commons or the Senate of Canada – and to inform her frequent public/ media pronouncements.

Everything the Society publishes – on criminal justice or correctional policy – is in the public domain, and some of it is on YouTube. You can read the testimony of various Senate or House of Commons presentations by searching the name of the Bill, the forum (House or Senate) and the date of the appearance.

Here is a page dedicated to Bill C-15, An Act to amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts.

The other excellent source of high-quality research is the Library of Parliament.

For meta-analyses of criminal justice policies conducted to the highest scientific standards, go to the Campbell Collaboration.

If you have a question about some aspect of correctional or justice policy research, you could hardly do better than to start at the Centre of Criminology’s library.