Methodology

Which cases are flagged

Sentence Watch records every sentencing decision it finds for a tracked judge. A subset of those cases is flagged. Judge pages show both numbers ("12 cases tracked, 9 flagged"). Judges with at least 5 cases that can be compared with the Crown's ask also get a leniency score, explained in the leniency score. Tracked cases are the published decisions Sentence Watch has found, not every sentence a judge has imposed, and every count and score says so.

When a case is flagged

A case is flagged when both of these hold.

1. The case is serious. At least one of:

• The offender was convicted of a violent, sexual, or firearms offence.
• The offender was convicted of impaired operation causing death.
• The offender had 3 or more prior convictions.

2. At least one leniency indicator is present:

• Below the Crown's ask: the sentence was lower than what the Crown asked for. Custody is compared in days, before credit for time already served. A conditional sentence (served in the community) counts as zero days of custody. When neither side's position involves custody, the type of sentence is compared in this order: custody, conditional sentence, suspended sentence or probation, fine, discharge.
• Non-custodial sentence for a violent offence: a conditional sentence, suspended sentence, probation, fine, or discharge for a violent or sexual offence.
• Sentence increased on appeal: an appeal court found the sentence too low and raised it.
• On release at the time of the offence: the offender was on bail, probation, or parole when the offence happened.

Time window

Decisions from 2015 onward by default. Earlier decisions are recorded when found. Judges currently sitting and judges who retired after 2015.

What is never recorded

• Names of offenders in youth cases (Youth Criminal Justice Act) or in cases under a publication ban.
• Personal information about judges: home address, family, personal accounts, personal photos.
• Offence locations below city level.
• Lawyer profiles. Crown and defence counsel appear on case pages only, as named in the decision.

The leniency score

Each judge with enough comparable cases gets a leniency score from 0 to 100. A higher score means the judge's sentences fell further below what the Crown asked for, more often. The score is a summary of the published decisions Sentence Watch has recorded. It is not a judgment of a judge's competence or character, and it is not a measure of every case a judge has decided.

What counts

Only cases where the sentence can be compared with the Crown's position count toward the score. A case is left out when the decision doesn't say what the Crown asked for, or when both the sentence and the Crown's ask involve custody but one of the lengths isn't stated.

Points for each case

Each comparable case gets between 0 and 1 point.

How far the sentence fell below the Crown's ask. This is the main part of the score.

• When the Crown asked for a set period of custody, the case scores the share of that custody the sentence left out. The Crown asked for 4 years and the judge imposed 3: 0.25. A conditional sentence, served in the community, counts as no custody, as in the flagging rule.
• When both the Crown and the judge chose life imprisonment, the parole ineligibility periods are compared the same way.
• When the Crown asked for life and the judge imposed a fixed term: 0.5.
• When the Crown didn't ask for custody, or a length is missing, a lesser kind of sentence than the Crown asked for scores 0.5. The order is custody, conditional sentence, suspended sentence or probation, fine, discharge.
• A sentence equal to or harsher than the Crown's ask scores 0. Harsh sentences don't lower the score: it measures leniency only.

Extra points, added to the gap:

• No jail for a violent or sexual offence: 0.25.
• An appeal court raised the sentence because it was too low: 0.25.
• The offender was on bail, probation or parole at the time of the offence: 0.1.

A case never scores more than 1.

From cases to a score

A judge needs at least 5 comparable cases to receive a score. Below that, their page shows the counts but no score and no rank.

A judge with few cases could get an extreme score from one or two unusual decisions. To prevent that, each judge's average is blended with the average across all judges, as if they had 5 more cases at the overall average. With 5 cases a judge's own record counts for half of the score; with 20 cases, for four fifths. The result is multiplied by 100 and rounded.

A judge whose sentences match the overall average gets the overall average score, which each ranking page shows.

Limits

• Published decisions only. Judges write and publish reasons for some sentences and not others, and Sentence Watch can only record what is published. The score describes those decisions, not every sentence a judge has imposed.
• The Crown's ask is a position, not a standard. The Crown argues for the sentence it considers fit. A sentence below the ask can be entirely proper, for example after a guilty plea, strong mitigating facts or a successful argument by the defence. Joint submissions, where the Crown and defence agree, almost always end at the ask and score 0.
• Cases differ. The score doesn't adjust for the offence, the offender's record or the facts. Read the cases behind every score: each judge's page lists them all, with the Crown's ask, the sentence and the judge's reasons.
• Courts and provinces differ. Sentencing practice varies between courts. Compare judges within the same court where possible.

How each fact is sourced

Every fact on a case page carries a footnote to where it came from: the published decision, or a news report when no decision was published. Where possible the footnote includes the exact words of the source, with the paragraph number.

What is recorded for each case

The sentence. The total sentence the judge imposed, as stated at the end of the decision. Custody is recorded before credit for time already spent in custody before sentencing, so it can be compared with what the Crown asked for. The credit is noted separately. Consecutive sentences are added together; concurrent ones are not. When credit for time served covers the whole sentence, the case says "time served".

What the Crown asked for. The Crown's position on sentence, as the decision describes it. When the Crown asked for a range, the low end is used and the range is quoted, so a case is only marked "below the Crown's ask" when the sentence fell below the bottom of the range.

What the defence asked for. Recorded when the decision states it, for context. It plays no part in flagging a case.

Mandatory minimums. Whether a mandatory minimum sentence applied, did not apply, or was found unconstitutional or set aside under a binding court ruling. The minimums listed on offence pages come from the federal statutes and note the ones the courts have struck down.

Prior convictions. The number of earlier convictions described in the decision, counting each conviction rather than each court date, and how many of them were for violent offences.

On release at the time of the offence. Whether the offender was on bail, probation, parole or another form of release when the offence happened, when the decision says so. When the decision is silent, the case says "not stated".

In the judge's words. A short passage from the judge's reasons for the sentence, quoted exactly. Passages are never paraphrased or shortened mid-sentence.

Appeals. When an appeal court rules on the sentence, the case links to that decision and says whether the sentence was increased, reduced or upheld.

Offending again. When a later published decision shows the same person offending again after this sentence, the two cases are linked. The link is made only when both decisions clearly identify the same person.

Publication bans and youth cases

Before anything else is recorded, the first page of every decision is checked for a publication ban or a youth case. If either applies, the offender is never named, even when only the victim's identity is protected. The database itself refuses to attach an offender's name to such a case.

Cases based on news reports

Some sentences are never published as written decisions. These cases are recorded from news coverage, labelled "based on news reports", and link to each article used. If a written decision is found later, it is added as a source.

What the numbers mean

Judge pages count the cases Sentence Watch has tracked. They are not a sample of everything a judge decided, so they are never shown as rates or percentages, and they are not a measure of a judge's overall record.