NCR Designation
The Criminal Code of Canada in section 16 lays out a frame work to determine whether an accused can be held culpable for his or her actions based on a three prong test.
Section 16(1) of the Criminal Code reads as follows: 16. (1) No person is criminally responsible for an act committed or an omission made while suffering from a mental disorder that rendered the person incapable of appreciating the nature and quality of the act or omission or of knowing that it was wrong. (Criminal Code, 1985 s16) In other words, in order to be found Not Criminally Responsible, a person did not have the capacity to appreciate their actions, know right from wrong at the time of the offence or whether he or she had control over their behavior …show more content…
As set out in s. 672.54 of the Code: absolute discharge, a conditional discharge, or detention in hospital.( Criminal Code, 1985, s672) a Review Board must hold a hearing and make a disposition within 90 days after the Court’s initial order.
(Criminal Code, 1985, s672) If a disposition of remand to a mental health facility is made, the review board must hold a hearing once in a twelve month period until the accused no longer possess a significant threat personal or public safety. (Criminal Code, 1985,s672)
Appeal Section 672.72(2) allows any party to appeal against a disposition ordered by the court or Review Board to the respective provincial Court of Appeal on a question of fact, law, or both.93 (Criminal Code, 1985) The Not criminally responsible act is in place because it recognizes that there are those in the community that have special needs and that those who are mentally distorted in anyway need to be protected and the community needs protection from the harm that the individual may have perpetrated. Furthermore, the NCR designation preserves the inherent dignity of the accused by removing the notion of punishment or retribution and replaces those with addressing and stabilizing the accused through a series of therapeutic modalities while protecting the public from the accused