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Once they’ve done their jail time, should convicted sex offenders be allowed to change their names?

I’ve been digging into this question since I talked to Nate Glubish, the provincial government’s minister of Service Alberta, which runs our public registries.

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Glubish will soon put forward legislation making it illegal for convicted sex offenders, and perhaps other major criminals, to legally change their names, something they are now permitted to do under Alberta law.

“I recently learned that in Alberta sex offenders could change their names and hide from their past, and I found that quite shocking and unacceptable,” Glubish said.

“If they do change their names, it makes it easier for them to hide from their past and to hide in their communities. That makes their communities less safe. I’m not OK with that. I don’t think Albertans would be OK with that.”

Survivors of sexual abuse and trauma have to live with that trauma for the rest of their lives, Glubish says. “I want to make sure that their offenders have to live under their own names… It’s an important step to protect Albertans and an important step to show support for survivors of sexual violence.”