Survivors of sexual violence deserve meaningful options for justice that prioritize repair, healing, and accountability. But right now, Ontario’s Crown policy D.4 denies survivors of sexual assault the choice to divert their cases outside of the criminal process, even though this is allowed for many other offences.
Under this 30-year-old policy, the province prohibits the diversion of sexual offences to non-criminal processes. This means that even when survivors wish to pursue restorative or transformative justice (RJ/TJ) — approaches that are non-adversarial, repair-focused, and often community-based — the system prevents them from doing so.
Take Action: Tell your elected officials that it’s time to reform Crown policy D.4 and promote survivor autonomy!
Learn more by reading our new report, Bridging Justices: A Critical Exploration of Moratoriums on Restorative and Transformative Justice for Sexual Harm in Ontario.
