George Everett Klippert (September 6, 1926 – August 7, 1996) was the last person in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

to be arrested, charged, prosecuted, convicted, and imprisoned for

gross indecency Gross indecency is a crime in some parts of the English-speaking world, originally used to criminalize sexual activity between men that fell short of sodomy, which required penetration. The term was first used in British law in a statute of the Br ...

before the decriminalization of homosexual acts in 1969; the reform was a direct result of the Klippert case. Klippert, originally from

Kindersley Kindersley is a town surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Kindersley No. 290 in west-central Saskatchewan, Canada. It is located along Highway 7, a primary highway linking Calgary, Alberta and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. At a population of 4,59 ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North ...

, was raised in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. In 1960 he was convicted on eighteen charges of gross indecency and sentenced to four years' imprisonment. Upon his release, he moved to northern Canada. He was working as a

mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and ...

in Pine Point,

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

, in 1965 when he was picked up by police for questioning in connection with a case of suspected

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

. Although he was found not to have had any involvement in the fire, Klippert voluntarily admitted to having had recent consensual homosexual relations with four different adult men. He was subsequently arrested and charged with four counts of "gross indecency". A court-ordered psychiatrist assessed Klippert as "incurably homosexual", and Klippert was sentenced to "preventive detention" (that is, indefinitely) as a dangerous

sexual offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crim ...

. Klippert appealed to the Court of Appeal for the Northwest Territories; his appeal was dismissed. He then appealed to the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to ...

; his appeal was dismissed on November 7, 1967, in a controversial 3–2 decision. The day after Klippert's conviction was upheld,

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * ...

leader

Tommy Douglas Thomas Clement Douglas (20 October 1904 – 24 February 1986) was a Scottish-born Canadian politician who served as seventh premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961 and Leader of the New Democratic Party from 1961 to 1971. A Baptist min ...

invoked Klippert's name in the House of Commons of Canada, stating that "homosexuality is a social and psychiatric problem rather than a criminal one", and asking Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson if he would consider setting up a commission to study the issue, similar to the Wolfenden Committee in Britain which brought in "enlightened and humane recommendations for coping with this problem." The Prime Minister replied that he would be very glad to consider that matter. Douglas followed up with a second question, asking the Minister of Justice,

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and ...

, if this matter was being considered by officials in the Department of Justice. Trudeau replied that "one aspect of this matter is being looked at in the context of another law." Within six weeks, Pierre Trudeau presented the '' Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1968-69'' (Bill C-150 of 1968), an

omnibus bill An omnibus bill is a proposed law that covers a number of diverse or unrelated topics. ''Omnibus'' is derived from Latin and means "to, for, by, with or from everything". An omnibus bill is a single document that is accepted in a single vote by a ...

which, among other things, decriminalized homosexual acts between consenting adults. The law passed, and homosexual acts between consenting adults were decriminalized in Canada in 1969. Klippert remained in prison until his release on July 21, 1971. He lived 25 more years before his death from

kidney disease Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can ...

in 1996. In 2016 the government of

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since ...

indicated that it planned to recommend a formal posthumous

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

of Klippert's conviction."Trudeau to urge pardon for man deemed a dangerous sex offender for being gay in 1960s"
'' The Globe and Mail'', February 27, 2016. On November 18, 2020, an expungement order was issued by the

Parole Board of Canada The Parole Board of Canada (french: Commission des libérations conditionnelles du Canada; formerly known as the National Parole Board) is the Canadian government agency that is responsible for reviewing and issuing parole and criminal pardons in ...

.Everett Klippert Coda
at the Calgary Gay History Project; published March 11, 2021; retrieved May 15, 2022 In 2018, Klippert's life became the topic of the stage play ''Legislating Love: The Everett Klippert Story'',by Calgary playwright Natalie Meisner.
by Michelle Bodnar, at

Mount Royal University Mount Royal University (MRU) is a public university in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. History Mount Royal University was founded by Alberta provincial charter by the Arthur Sifton government on December 16, 1910 and officially opened on September 8 ...

; published March 20, 2018; retrieved May 15, 2022

Bibliography

Pierre Berton Pierre Francis de Marigny Berton, CC, O.Ont. (July 12, 1920 – November 30, 2004) was a Canadian writer, journalist and broadcaster. Berton wrote 50 best-selling books, mainly about Canadiana, Canadian history and popular culture. He also ...

: ''1967: The Last Good Year'': Toronto: Doubleday Canada: 1997: * Gary Kinsman: ''Regulation of Desire: Sexuality in Canada'': Montreal: New York: 1987, 1995: , 155164 0406

References

External links

Gross Indecency: The Everett Klippert Story
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klippert, Everett 1926 births 1996 deaths Canadian prisoners and detainees Deaths from kidney disease Canadian gay men Legal history of Canada LGBT history in Canada People convicted of sodomy Prisoners and detainees of Canada People from Calgary People from Kindersley People from the Northwest Territories 20th-century Canadian LGBT people

See also

Bibliography

References

External links