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QUEBEC — The Legault government has presented legislation that will give police access to information about people who have been found not criminally responsible by reason of a mental disorder or because they were unfit to stand trial.
Rising in the legislature Thursday, Public Security Minister François Bonnardel presented Bill 66, which is already being tagged the “Maureen Breau bill” in honour of a Sûreté du Québec officer who was killed in an incident in Louiseville in March 2023 by a man with a long history of mental illness.
Breau died after being attacked with a knife while responding to a call with another officer who was injured in the incident.
The bill is titled “An Act to reinforce the supervision of persons in respect of whom has been rendered a verdict of not criminally responsible by reason of mental disorder or of unfit to stand trial.”
It will allow health and social service organizations such as a hospital to communicate with a police force information necessary for interventions involving people who have been found not criminally responsible because of mental illness or because they were unfit to stand trail.
Alocated a budget of $11.3 million over five years, Quebec will hire 20 liason officers to coordinate the management of the information in all the regions of Quebec.
The legislation arrives before the results of a coroner’s inquiry are finished.
Bonnardel is to hold a news conference later Thursday to explain the legislation.
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