How the N.S. shooting could make abusers’ tactics a crime
Coercion law would let victims’ acquaintances report threats, control
HALIFAX—THE repeated threats and isolation a Nova Scotia mass shooter allegedly used against his spouse show why such cruelty should be a criminal offence in Canada, experts on domestic violence say.
Acquaintances and former neighbours have described the 51-year-old killer as a clever and manipulative millionaire who would threaten harm to his spouse’s family, control her money or cut off her means of escape by removing the tires from her car or blocking the driveway.
Carmen Gill, a professor at the University of New Brunswick, says if there’s a public inquiry into the shooting, she expects it will demonstrate how a law similar to the United Kingdom’s 2015 “coercive control” offence may help prevent other abusers from escaping detection.
“Coercive control is a horrible form of violence because it’s a way of controlling people and depriving them of their basic rights,” the sociologist said in a telephone interview.
Gabriel Wortman’s killings were preceded by a domestic assault against his spouse on the night of April 18 at one of his properties in Portapique, N.S. After the woman escaped, the 51-year-old denturist killed 22 victims before police shot and killed him at a service station on April 19.
Neighbours and multiple police witnesses have said there were many forms of intimate partner abuse before the night of the rampage. In court documents released last week, acquaintances told police they’d witnessed “abusive,” “controlling” and “manipulative” behaviour by Wortman in the past, though details are blacked out.
Gill said this is the kind of isolation and intimidation that would likely lead to prosecution under Section 76 of the Serious Crime Act passed in the United Kingdom.
“Someone who is controlling their spouses will take all kinds of tactics to minimize their ability to reach out,” she said. “This was a disturbing situation which clearly shows he was isolating his partner.”
Gill said a U.k.-style coercion law would allow acquaintances and colleagues to report exactly these patterns of threats and control.
The sociologist recently submitted a paper to the federal Justice Department’s ombudsman for victims of crime on this potential legal reform.
It notes Criminal Code provisions prohibit specific abuse, such as criminal harassment, uttering threats, making harassing phone calls, trespassing at night, and mischief but says there is no offence that fully captures the ongoing, coercive control of intimate partners.