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The Canadian
Criminal Code
(formal title An Act respecting the Criminal Law) is the codification of
most of the criminal offenses and procedure in Canada. Section 91(27) of
the Canadian constitution establishes criminal law as under the juristiction
of the federal Parliament. The Criminal Code also contains some defenses,
but most are part of the common law. It should be noted that the Canadian
Criminal Code is not a code in the civil law meaning of the term, because
it does present principles in any logical way. Other important Canadian
criminal laws are the Firearms Act, the Controlled Drugs and Substances
Act, the Canada Evidence Act, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the Contraventions
Act. History
It was first enacted in 1892. It was based on a drafted code called "the
Stephen Code", written by the Sir James Stephens as part of a Royal
Commission in England in 1879.
Amendments
The code has been revised numerous times including 1955 and 1985.
By means of Charter
Challenges, numerous sections of the code have been struck down as infringing
on a constitutional right as defined in the Canadian Charter of Rights
and Freedoms. Though they are still present in the code, these provisions
have no force and effect. Among such laws include the criminalization
of abortion, struck down in 1988 in the case of Morgentaler et. al. v.
Her Majesty The Queen.
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