This text is part of the special International Women’s Day booklet
The past year has seen many significant legal advances in the fight against domestic violence in Quebec. Summary of the main gains and remaining challenges.
Against the background of this progress, we find the report rebuild trustresulting from the work of the Committee of Experts on Support for Victims of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, made public in December 2020, and its 190 recommendations.
“The government has taken the recommendations of rebuild trust seriously, and has decided to implement them,” notes Louise Riendeau, co-responsible for political issues at the Regroupement des maisons pour femmes victims de violence conjugale.
Another report, that of the Domestic Violence Death Review Committee, also made recommendations for legal changes.
“In addition to these two reports, we were in a context where, in the fall of 2019, we had a wave of child deaths, and last year, a record number of feminicides with 18 women killed in a marital context. . All of this prompted the government to act. »
A specialized court
Among the major advances, the adoption, in November 2021, of Bill 92, aims to create a specialized court for sexual violence and domestic violence, which will begin with pilot projects over the next few months in five judicial districts before being set in motion throughout Quebec.
“This will allow us to see if it works well, if we have better support for victims, if it gives them more confidence in the judicial system, says Louise Riendeau. Over time, it was found that victims lost faith in the system, and turned to social media to report their abusers. [Le tribunal spécialisé], it was one of the important recommendations of the report. »
Prosecutors and specialized police
In order to better equip the judicial system to deal with cases of domestic and sexual violence, new positions for specialized prosecutors have been created. The Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions plans to set up training to enable these prosecutors to learn how to work better with victims so that they feel believed and safe.
“The idea is to have prosecutors who know these issues and also who will have the time to meet the victims to prepare them before the trial. In the past, we saw prosecutors who had so much work that they met the victims the morning of the trial, which is not ideal for giving them confidence. It will also allow the same prosecutor to work on a case from start to finish. »
As for the police forces, we are gradually undertaking the creation of teams dedicated to conjugal violence, in particular at the Sûreté du Québec and in certain municipalities.
“One of our demands is that all police officers should have ongoing training in this area, as they have in other subjects. They are forced to requalify in weapons handling or on breathalyzers, but not in domestic violence. However, it is a significant volume of their interventions”, underlines Mme Riendeau.
Violent spouses
Not so long ago, not all batterers were systematically assessed before being released.
“There was no systematic evaluation, observes Louise Riendeau. We started doing this in 2018 in four judicial districts, and over the past year, it has been extended to all of Quebec. However, this is done only if the prosecution and the defense agree. If the defense refuses, these assessments cannot be made. We would like judges to have the power to order these evaluations, because we know that in domestic violence, the offenders know the victims and can easily threaten them. »
In some cases, the use of anti-reconciliation bracelets is now considered, if deemed necessary.
“The government is studying this possibility. These are bracelets that certain violent spouses reputed to be dangerous could wear, so that they cannot approach the victim within two defined perimeters. They would then receive a warning telling them to turn back, and if they continue to approach, the police department and the victim will be notified. This should start in the spring, in the Quebec region. »
Other battles to fight
The fight against domestic violence continues on several fronts.
“What we want to win is that in family law and youth protection, we force the court to take spousal violence into account. At the moment, the Youth Protection Act is being studied, and it should take into account children exposed to conjugal violence in order to better oversee interventions. In addition, we want intervention programs with violent spouses to be better evaluated and to be the subject of standards and best practices,” concludes Ms.me Riendeau.