Commission on the Reform of Ontario's Public Services

Chapter 14: Justice Sector
Public Expectations: There are increasing expectations from the public for justice-related
services and for assurance that public safety remains a key consideration for the government.
In Toronto, there are increasing rates of certain violent crime. As a result, the public may not
perceive that the crime rate is, in fact, decreasing. Criminal investigations (e.g., organized
crime, gangs and Internet crime) are increasingly complex and require significant resources.
There has also been a significant increase in family court workload due to increased child
protection initiatives. As well, public focus on emergency management has increased due
to catastrophic events (such as 9-11).
The spending reduction targets proposed in Chapter 1, The Need for Strong Fiscal Action, to
get Ontario back to balance by 2017–18, clearly illustrate that the sector will need to transform
its service delivery and find efficiencies to meet its spending targets, while also ensuring public
confidence in the system and meeting the criminal justice system’s standards. Several of the
<strong>Commission</strong>’s recommendations should assist the sector in reaching those objectives.
<strong>Commission</strong> Principles and Goals for the Justice Sector
Evidence-Based Data Collection
Recommendation 14-1: Improve evidence-based data collection in the justice sector to
achieve better outcomes in sector programs.
To support evidence-based decision-making, the sector needs to improve its collection of
standardized data that can be used to evaluate whether policies and programs are meeting
their intended objectives, and how efficiently. The Justice On Target (JOT) program, which
uses existing court activity data, is an example of a provincial program using evidence-based
data to achieve better outcomes. Decision-making and analytical tools (e.g., dashboards)
have been developed to help decision-makers measure success.
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