CASTLEGAR, BC – Alex Atamanenko (BC Southern Interior) is asking the Minister for Public Safety, Peter Van Loan, to reconsider his decision not to allow Perley Holmes, a constituent who was convicted in the US for drug trafficking, to serve his time in Canada.
“I am deeply disappointed in the Minister’s denial of this application,” said Atamanenko. “Mr. Holmes made a serious mistake and is paying for it by serving 8 years in prison. However, it is cruel to his wife, Sheila, their eight children, his 87 year old mother and their extended family having him so far away and for so long. The agreement between our two countries allows him to serve this time in Canada.”
Holmes is serving time at Moshannon Valley Correctional Centre in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania. His application for prisoner transfer under the International Transfer of Offenders Act (ITO) was denied on April 9th yet Mr. Holmes and his family did not find out about it until July of this year.
Atamanenko went on to explain that the ITO is both humanitarian and practical in its purpose. Its helps alleviate the kind of hardship suffered in a foreign prison and also that borne by the offender’s family. Once transferred, the Correctional Service of Canada facilitates an offender’s eventual reintegration into society through practical and varied programs designed in the interests of public protection.
Atamanenko says that he has received numerous letters of support on Perley Holmes’ behalf from family, friends, neighbours and co-workers. He believes that Holmes is well-regarded, despite his error and, if brought home, he has the kind of support in place that would make the job of the Correctional Service of Canada much easier in accessing his risk and preparing for his release.
“Upon completion of his or her sentence in a foreign prison, an offender is released and deported to Canada, without a criminal record or any conditions attached,” said the BC MP. “Even if Mr. Holmes was a genuine threat to our national security, a determination with which I disagree, I think most Canadians would prefer that he be transferred into our system so that he could be monitored and supervised upon release.”
“The ITO legislation is intended for precisely these types of situations,” added New Democrat Public Safety Critic Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway). “Our society has a clear interest in sentencing offenders. We also benefit from effective rehabilitation and ensuring innocent family members are not irreparably harmed.”
“I also urge the government to transfer Mr. Holmes to complete his sentence in Canada,” Davies concluded.