Jurors can discuss details of cases while seeking trauma support, Sask. lawyers believe long overdue
Jurors can now discuss all aspects of cases they’ve sat on while getting mental health support.
The federal bill S-206 was officially passed last year but came into effect on Monday. It ultimately amended the Criminal Code to allow jurors to share information during professional medical or psychiatric treatment, therapy, and counselling.
Brian Pfefferle, a criminal lawyer based in Saskatoon, told paNOW he believes this is long overdue.
“They’re not volunteers, they’re voluntold to appear in court and deal with matters that are extremely traumatic, sometimes extremely emotional,” he said. “They’re saddled with extremely difficult tasks of determining someone’s guilt or innocence.”