The Saskatchewan and Alberta governments are making a call to other provinces to change legislation so that prohibited sex offenders can not change their names.
The move comes after Alberta decided to change their legislation making the two provinces the only ones to have this in effect.
Justice Minister Don Morgan said on Wednesday at the legislature that it’s an appropriate thing to do to make sure someone cannot mask their identity with a name change.
“Doesn’t mean a person isn’t entitled to redemption or moving on. But to simply change your name and avoid the problem is not a matter that we think is good safety for our citizens,” stated Morgan.
Saskatchewan brought in the changes to introduce criminal record checks as part of the change of name application process for anyone 18 years of age or older.
Morgan hopes other provinces will follow suit in order to limit sex offenders moving from province to province with the ability to change their name.
“That was one of the triggering events that happened in Saskatchewan. Someone that had been convicted elsewhere and moved to Saskatchewan was able to change their name here,” said the minister. “I commend Alberta for following our lead.”
(With files from Moises Canales)
