A new Indigenous Justice Centre (IJC) officially opened in Cranbrook on Thursday, Jan. 23.
The Cranbrook IJC is one of six new locations across the province, established through an initiative led by the B.C. First Nations Justice Council (BCFNJC).
The IJC in Cranbrook offers supports to Indigenous people – First Nations, Métis and Inuit – who are dealing with criminal and child protection matters, and who otherwise cannot access help through legal aid.
It offers culturally safe, welcoming places for Indigenous people to directly access, in community, culturally appropriate justice services, including legal advice and representation for criminal justice and child protection matters.
Sarah McCoubrey, Director of Indigenous Justice Center Transformation with the BCFNJC, was on hand at an open house at the new location on 12th Avenue South.
“We often say at BCFNJC that opening the doors is the starting line, not the finish line,” McCoubrey said. “Now that we have a space, we have some staff, we are really looking forward to working with all of you to understand where the strengths are, to fit in between the cracks, where there are gaps.
“We're not here to take over what other people are doing well. We want to figure out how we work really collaboratively.”
The Cranbrook IJC is the only one in southeast B.C., the next nearest being in Kelowna. It is staffed by a staff lawyer, a resource and support worker, and an office administrator.
“We appreciate the dual streams of work of the BC First Nations Justice Council,” said Debbie Whitehead, Ktunaxa Nation Council Social Investment Advisor. “They don’t just respond to immediate needs like providing lawyers and support—they also bring a vision for systemic change, which aligns with our goals as Ktunaxa people.
"Indigenous clients have someone in their corner, advocating for them as individuals, but also identifying gaps and working to fill them. It’s gratifying and inspiring to see this level of collaboration and cultural respect.”
McCoubrey said the Centre has two main “tracks” of focus.
“Track one, which is providing services right now to indigenous people, First Nations, Métis, Inuit people who are caught in the criminal and the child protection system.
“But then our track two work is the work that we want to do slowly over time together with the Nation about how do we help to stand up Indigenous law. How do we find ways as early as possible to work with police officers, to work with Crown, to divert people out of the justice system into other supports, into elder led and culturally appropriate approaches. The legal representation and wraparound supports for people facing criminal and child protection matters.
“We know there's a need for legal supports on all kinds of issues, housing, employment, all kinds of things.”
"The Ktunaxa Nation Council has been a driving force in pushing for justice solutions in our territory,” Whitehead said. “From developing a justice strategy to exploring restorative justice models in other provinces, we’ve been committed to addressing these gaps for years. To now see an Indigenous Justice Centre here, with a culturally safe and collaborative mandate, is incredibly exciting for our community.”
IJC objectives include:
• Keeping Indigenous people safe by reducing incarceration. This can be obtained by promoting and facilitating expanded community support for accused at trial; and seeking greater use of restorative justice in sentencing; and seeking reduction in numbers of sentencing/release conditions which unnecessarily increase the likelihood of re-incarceration on breach.
• Divert Indigenous people to a healthy path away from justice involvement, through promoting diversion as a “first option” at all levels of the criminal justice process; promoting better transitions from jail and reintegration into community; and providing referrals to health / treatment services, victim services, or other supportive programming.
• Making the justice system experience more Indigenous, by the provision of a safe cultural space for Indigenous service providers to assist clients, and by supporting community efforts to implement or expand traditional Indigenous justice forms and seek self-determination in justice matters
IJCs also aim to make it easier for Indigenous people to navigate justice and obtain support; through legal representation and/or legal referrals in child welfare and criminal cases, Elder and community support at court and other forums, and outreach on access to justice and legal literacy regarding child welfare processes and criminal law.