Sex Offender Notices and Protest Buffer Zones

Summary#

• Bill 13 aims to improve public safety and the feeling of safety in Quebec. It creates two new laws and updates several others.
• It allows public disclosure of information about certain high‑risk sex offenders after review by a new committee.
• It sets new protest rules, including a 50‑metre buffer around elected officials’ homes, limits on dangerous items at protests, and police powers to search and seize those items.
• It bans showing symbols or names of listed criminal groups in public, with clear exceptions (journalism, education, art, court, or clear public interest).
• It enables Indigenous communities to form joint police boards and strengthens victim safety and information‑sharing in specific cases.

Key changes

• Creates a committee to decide when to publicly share details (name, photo, area of residence, offense, release conditions) about certain high‑risk sex offenders, for up to 3 years.
• Sûreté du Québec must publish those details with a warning against vigilante action; offenders can appeal within 60 days.
• Bans protests within 50 metres of the home property of a provincial MNA, a municipal elected official, or an elected prefect.
• Bars bringing or throwing items at protests that could injure, intimidate, or damage property; police can search and seize such items without a warrant if they have reasonable grounds.
• Outlaws publicly displaying symbols or names of criminal groups placed on a minister’s list (with good‑faith exceptions for news, teaching, art, court, or clear public interest).
• Lets police share limited personal information to help early response in domestic violence and to inform victims of an accused person’s release conditions.
• Creates a path for Indigenous communities to set up a shared police service through a new regional board.

What it means for you#

• Residents

  • You may see public notices with the name, photo, and area of residence of a high‑risk sex offender when one is released nearby. This can last up to 3 years and must include a warning not to take the law into your own hands.
  • Notices end if the person dies, is re‑incarcerated, or when the set period expires.

• People identified as high‑risk sex offenders

  • A new committee reviews your case before any public release of your information.
  • You can send written comments to the committee and appeal its decision to Quebec’s administrative tribunal within 60 days.
  • Published details can include your name, photo, year of birth, physical description, municipality/region, release date, offense(s), and release conditions.

• Protesters and organizers

  • You cannot protest within 50 metres of the property where a provincial or municipal elected official lives.
  • At protests, you cannot carry items that could injure, intimidate, or damage property without a valid reason (for example, some tools, billiard balls, paving stones, knives, compressed‑air weapons, or chemical agents). Fireworks and smoke devices need police or other authority approval.
  • Throwing such items is banned.
  • Police may, on reasonable grounds, search you and your immediate surroundings without a warrant and seize banned items.
  • Fines can range roughly from $250 to $5,000 for people, higher for organizations, and double for repeat offenses.

• Journalists, teachers, artists, and the public

  • You cannot publicly show patches, logos, names, or similar symbols of listed criminal groups (for example on clothing, flags, or posts), unless it is in good faith for journalism, education, art (where necessary), court, or a clearly relevant public‑interest purpose.
  • Existing funeral monuments or urns with such symbols before the listing are not affected.

• Victims of crime

  • If an accused is released by police before a first court appearance, police can tell you the release conditions you need to know to stay safe.
  • In some parole or temporary‑absence hearings, you may ask to read your written victim statement aloud, unless doing so could threaten someone’s safety.

• Indigenous communities

  • Communities can form a joint Indigenous police board to create or run a common police force, set governance rules, and sign an agreement with Quebec. That force is legally recognized during the agreement.

• Municipalities

  • Cities can bring cases under the new protest and symbol‑display rules when offenses happen on their territory and keep the resulting fines.

• Private security industry

  • Board members of the Bureau de la sécurité privée will have fixed 3‑year terms. The government may reassess which association best represents the sector when terms expire.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

• Public notices about certain high‑risk sex offenders help people take simple steps to protect themselves and their families.
• The disclosure process is targeted, time‑limited (up to 3 years), includes expertise (police, corrections, a lawyer, victim support, reintegration), and offers a right to appeal.
• The 50‑metre buffer and limits on dangerous items reduce intimidation and the risk of violence at protests, especially near officials’ homes.
• The ban on displaying criminal group symbols can reduce fear, discourage recruitment, and curb public shows meant to intimidate, while exceptions protect news, teaching, art, and the courts.
• Faster, need‑to‑know sharing of information helps protect victims, especially in domestic violence cases.
• Indigenous police boards support culturally appropriate, community‑led policing.

Opponents' View#

• Public naming and photos of offenders may fuel stigma or vigilante actions and could make reintegration harder, potentially harming long‑term safety.
• Key definitions (who counts as a covered sex offender and what “high risk” means) will come by regulation, raising concerns about transparency and fairness.
• The protest buffer and police search powers without a warrant may limit freedom of expression and assembly and could be applied unevenly.
• The ban on symbols and names of listed groups may overreach and restrict lawful expression, with risks of mistakes or confusion over similar symbols.
• Sharing personal information without consent, even for safety, can raise privacy concerns and needs strong safeguards.
• New enforcement duties may strain police and municipal courts and add costs without clear funding details.