Media Advisory: Innocence McGill Conference on Non-Criminal Responsibility

MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - How do victims of criminal acts experience the process of watching their attacker, found not criminally responsible (NCR) by virtue of mental illness, progressively reintegrate into society until they are granted an absolute discharge? How does the Canadian prison system address the significant needs in mental health care by a large number of inmates? What will be the effects of the recent reform to the NCR defence? These are a few of the questions that will be discussed during the Innocence McGill Conference: Criminal or Victim?

Andy and Noella Bouvier saw Sean Clifton, the man who brutally stabbed their daughter, released 8 years after the facts.  Documentary filmmaker John Kastner documented Sean Clifton's reintegration into society from the vantage points of both Clifton and his victim, Julie Bouvier.  Defence attorney Pierre Poupart has acted as counsel throughout his career for defendants in numerous cases where NCR defences were made.  Psychiatrist Anne Crocker conducts research on criminality among individuals with severe mental illness and on criminal process issues related to the NCR defense.

These four speakers will share their perspective on NCR and mental health issues in the Canadian criminal justice system.

Date:	Wednesday, 18 February 2015
Time:	5:00-6:00 pm: Screening of the documentary NCR: Not Criminally Responsible
	6:15-7:30 pm: Conference
	7:30-8:30 pm: Cocktail
Location:	Faculty of Law – McGill University
	3644 Peel St.
	Moot Court

Speakers:

• John Kastner, documentary filmmaker and director of NCR: Not Criminally Responsible
• Noella & Andy Bouvier: parents of the victim featured in Kastner's film NCR: Not Criminally Responsible
• Me Pierre Poupart: criminal defence lawyer, with extensive experience in NCR cases in Quebec
• Dr Anne Crocker: professor of psychiatry at McGill University, whose research areas include criminality among individuals with severe mental illness and associated criminal process issues.

SOURCE Ménard, Martin, avocats

Patrick Martin-Ménard, [phone]; Amanda Ghahremani, [phone]