Latimer

The Latimer case directly concerned the rights of persons with disabilities. Mr. Latimer's view was that a parent has the right to kill a child with a disability if that parent decides the child's quality of life no longer warrants its continuation. CCD explained to the court and to the public how that view threatens the lives of people with disabilities and is deeply offensive to fundamental constitutional values.

Selected CCD Documents

Press Releases

Latimer Appeal to Supreme Court Watched by Disabled Canadians

June 12, 2000

On June 14th the Supreme Court will hear Robert Latimer's appeal of his conviction of second-degree murder of his 12 year-old daughter Tracy. The Council of Canadians with Disabilities, along with five other organizations, has jointly received intervenor status in the Court. CCD and its members have followed this case with considerable concern since Tracy's murder in 1993. Robert Latimer has twice been convicted and had his appeals denied by the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal. This appeal to the Supreme Court is the final step.

Latimer Watch Newsletter

Supreme Court Decides Against Robert Latimer

January 18, 2001

The Supreme Court stated, "...we are mindful of the important role that the mandatory minimum sentence plays in denouncing murder. Denunciation of unlawful conduct is one of the objectives recognized in s. 718 of the Criminal Code._ As noted by the Court...: "The objective of denunciation mandates that a sentence should communicate society's condemnation of that particular offender's conduct. In short, a sentence with a denunciatory element represents a symbolic, collective statement that the offender's conduct should be punished for encroaching on our society's basic code of values as enshrined within our substantive criminal law."

Factum Excerpts

October 23, 1998

This edition presents a summary of the 1998 intervention factum presented by our community to the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal in the Latimer case. We explained to the court that this case directly concerns the rights of persons with disabilities. Mr. Latimer's view is that a parent has the right to kill a child with a disability if that parent decides the child's quality of life no longer warrants its continuation. That view threatens the lives of people with disabilities and is deeply offensive to fundamental constitutional values and to legal traditions which recognize that parents do not enjoy unfettered power with respect to the lives of their children.

Remembering

October 30, 1996

Tracy Latimer is not the only person with a disability murdered because they had a disability. CCD shares information about other children with disabilities who were killed by parents and caregivers.

The Reaction of People with Disabilities to Tracy's Murder

October 23, 1996

Tracy Latimer's murder outraged and alarmed people with disabilities. The media largely ignored the viewpoint of the disability community during the trial and the first appeal. As our analysis did not help inform public discourse, the conclusions reached often were skewed by an ableist bias. During the lead up to the Latimer's Supreme Court appeal, the Council of Canadians with Disabilities' (CCD) Human Rights Committee is working to ensure that the voice of people with disabilities is heard by Canadians.