addresses "hate crimes" by making that element an "aggravating circumstance" for sentencing purposes.
718.2 A court that imposes a sentence shall also take into consideration the following principles:
(a) a sentence should be increased or reduced to account for any relevant aggravating or mitigating circumstances relating to the offence or the offender, and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing,
(i) evidence that the offence was motivated by bias, prejudice or hate based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or any other similar factor,
(ii) evidence that the offender, in committing the offence, abused the offender’s spouse or common-law partner,
(ii.1) evidence that the offender, in committing the offence, abused a person under the age of eighteen years,
(iii) evidence that the offender, in committing the offence, abused a position of trust or authority in relation to the victim,
(iv) evidence that the offence was committed for the benefit of, at the direction of or in association with a criminal organization, or
(v) evidence that the offence was a terrorism offence
shall be deemed to be aggravating circumstances;
I don't know of whether/when the "sex" aspect has been expressly applied in sentencing. I doubt that it has, much.
Note item (ii) as well, where the fact that an offence involved spousal abuse is also an aggravating factor.
And interesting case on this point:
http://www.owjn.org/owjn_new/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=203&Itemid=67
In the early morning hours of April 17, 1995, on the outskirts of Regina, Saskatchewan, Pamela Jean George was beaten to death by two young white men. One of the two men convicted of killing her recently received full parole on November 10, 2000. Once more, this case triggers outrage in Aboriginal and women's communities, as it remains an example of the failure of the Canadian criminal justice system's capacity to address crime based in racism and misogyny.
... However, in December 1996, Kummerfield and Ternowetsky were convicted by jury of manslaughter, rather than murder, and sentenced to 6 and a half years each by Justice Ted Malone, with a delay placed on their ability to obtain parole as an extraordinary sanction. Justice Malone instructed the jury to remember that George was "indeed a prostitute" when considering whether she consented to a sexual assault. His comments lead a coalition of Saskatchewan women's groups, including NAC, to file a complaint to the Canadian Judicial Council. Vigils were held for George across Canada in at least nine cities.
... It is certainly arguable that if the aggravating factors of racism and misogyny were considered, the requisite intent to cause bodily harm likely to cause death may have been proven on the charge of murder, or in the alternative, the sanction imposed for George's manslaughter would have been more substantial.
Due to a lot of publicity about a significant number of cases like this (including the terrible serial murders of prostitutes, many of them Aboriginal, in Vancouver around that same time
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Pickton
that came to light only much later, arguably because of racist/misogynist attitudes in the police and society), results like this are less likely these days.
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