Ministère de la Sécurité publique - Insufficient assistance for an inmate’s release

A man who was about to be released from a detention facility had no place to live. He had no money for renting a room, because there were no probation arrangements, he did not have access to a community residential centre, and it was not possible to reserve a place for him in a resource that could take him in.

The citizen's complaint concerned:

• the lack of assistance in finding a place for him to live after his release.

The Québec Ombudsman’s investigation revealed that:

• the man had refused to go to a homeless shelter outside his region;
• he had gotten very little assistance from the detention facility workers;
• extra steps could have been taken quickly to give him assistance in anticipation of his release.

The Québec Ombudsman asked the detention facility to:

• provide the man with the required assistance in referring him to resources useful to him upon his release.

The facility agreed to act on the Québec Ombudsman’s request. He was informed that he could apply for social assistance or get help from a street caseworker. Arrangements were also made to facilitate his transport to a homeless shelter or local community services centre.