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Domestic violence cases hold steady

Women’s safety fair this weekend at Trout Lake Community Centre
Mary Collins
Vancouver Police Board member Mary Collins. Photo Dan Toulgoet

A Vancouver Police Board member is worried about the steady rate of domestic violence incidents in the city and how it reached more than 4,500 cases last year, despite efforts by police to curb the violence.

Mary Collins expressed her concern at a police board meeting June 19 after listening to a presentation by three members of the Vancouver Police Department’s domestic violence and criminal harassment unit.

Statistics provided showed 4,327 incidents in 2010, which increased to 4,504 in 2011 and dropped to 4,310 in 2012. A total of 4,585 cases were investigated last year, with 1,180 leading to charges and 278 involving weapons.

“I realize it’s not necessarily the police’s responsibility, but we’re not doing a very good job in bringing those numbers down,” Collins told Insp. Cita Airth and sergeants Teresa Buckoll and Benedikte Wilkinson. “I’m wondering from the perspective that you have, what do you think that as a society and different sectors we should be doing to try to reduce those overall numbers of domestic violence?”

The officers pointed out the statistics don’t account for the city’s population growth or the fact there is better reporting of the incidents, which translates to more investigations.

But Airth emphasized the need to educate youth about healthy relationships “so that we are not looking at the same issues maybe in 20 years from now.” For the police unit’s part, officers liaise with various agencies to protect victims and monitor abusers.

Victim service workers from Family Services of Greater Vancouver are embedded in the unit and support more than 400 victims per year. On average, another 40 victims per year are referred to battered women support services and multicultural agencies, where more than 20 languages are spoken.

Officers work regularly with three Crown prosecutors dedicated to domestic violence cases and have established a threat assessment group with sheriffs and the RCMP.

The unit also provides cellphones to victims for 911 calls, will ensure locks and bars are installed in victims’ homes and provide safety plan measures, including the equivalent of a witness protection program.

Buckoll clarified the unit doesn’t have the staff to investigate all 4,500 cases but reviews all of them before settling on up to eight per cent of high-risk cases. Other files are investigated by officers within the department.

Deputy Chief Doug LePard said a homicide related to a domestic violence incident is rare in Vancouver, with one occurring this year. None was recorded last year while there were three between 2010 to 2012.

LePard said recent Statistics Canada research shows that at one time almost 100 women per year in Canada were killed in domestic violence incidents. That number has since dropped by about half, LePard said.

“The research says that a big contributing cause of that very significant reduction over half a generation is because of pro-arrest policies and because of the specialization in police forces like the [domestic violence] unit,” he told the board. “Although it will always be part of our society, it really is a good news story in terms of one of the things that the police and other stakeholders — Crown and advocates and counsellors — have really had a measurable impact on.”

The VPD will host a women’s safety fair July 5 at Trout Lake Community Centre from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Several agencies that work with the police and on domestic violence issues will be there.

The fair will include safety demonstrations for women, tips for safely using social media, community discussions and information booths. More information is available on the VPD’s website.

mhowell@vancourier.com
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