What are Gladue factors?
Gladue principles apply to sentencing hearings. Every court must apply the Gladue principles even if it’s not a Gladue Court. This means a judge must look at an Indigenous person’s background and the impact of discrimination on them when deciding what sentence is appropriate. Jail should always be a last resort for Indigenous people.
Examples of Gladue factors include:
- Are you or someone in your family a residential school survivor?
- Are you or someone in your family affected by the “Sixties Scoop”, where the government removed Indigenous children from their homes?
- Were you put in a foster home or involved in the child protection system?
- Have you or someone in your family experienced poverty?
- Have you or someone in your family experienced racism, trauma, childhood abuse, violence, or addictions?
Gladue principles apply to anyone who self-identifies as Indigenous, Metis, First Nations, Aboriginal, or Inuit. It doesn’t matter if you live on or off reserve, or if you have a status card.
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