Pandemic causing more incidents of domestic violence, police say
The Moose Jaw Police Service (MJPS) is starting to respond to more calls about domestic abuse, which the police chief says is connected to the pandemic and twomonth lockdown.
It’s not just the number of calls to which police are responding for domestic violence, it’s also the severity and the level of violence that is troubling, police Chief Rick Bourassa explained on May 19 during the board of police commissioner’s meeting.
Nationally, there is a concern among police and social agencies that victims — such as women and children — have been unable to report these problems since households have been quarantined, he continued. The MJPS knows it’s not hearing the complaints it usually should, but as the pandemic lifts, it expects to hear more about those abusive situations, especially for children.
The police service would generally hear about child abuse through schools, but those institutions have been closed during the pandemic.
“It is something that is happening, but it hasn’t come to our awareness yet,” he added.
According to data from police, there were six calls about domestic disputes in April, compared to nine during the same month last year. From January to April this year, the MJPS received 40 calls about domestic violence, compared to 35 incidents from January to April last year, an increase of 14.3 per cent.
Total crimes committed against persons in April was 31, while the overall figure during the first four months of the year was 175. This overall number is an increase of six calls compared to the same time last year.
There were 15 calls about assaults in April, composed of common assaults (10), assault with a weapon/cause bodily harm (four), and assault police (one). In comparison, there were 23 calls about assaults in April 2019. Beside regular police officers, the organization’s two Police and Crisis Team (PACT) units have also been busy responding to domestic conflicts.
“The domestic situation is a little bit more desperate than usual, and that’s, in turn, causing a consistent workload for our PACT teams,” explained Supt. Devon Oleniuk. The two units have been working in unison, which has allowed them to do consistent work and hand off duties if necessary, he added. In the past, there was one complete PACT unit and another team that augmented what the other did.
Besides an increase in domestic violence, police are also seeing an increase in crimes against property, data that they are analyzing to determine a cause, Bourassa said. There were 375 calls about property crimes from January to April of this year, compared to 315 during the same time last year. This is an increase of 19 per cent. Most notable has been calls about break and enters, with police responding to 18 calls in April compared to 20 during the same time last year. However, the total number of B&Es during the past four months was 98, compared to 83 during the same time in 2019.
Many break-ins have occurred in storage units, while an incident also happened at a church and a truck-and-trailer compound, Oleniuk explained. There were 27 calls during the past four months about break-ins into business premises, compared to 14 calls during the same time last year. This is an increase of 92.9 per cent.
Thefts under $5,000 have also spiked, with police responding to 168 calls during the first four months compared to 131 last year. This is an increase of 28.2 per cent. Total calls for service this year have decreased to 4,514 incidents from 4,916 incidents a year ago, said Bourassa. This is interesting since while calls for service decreased by half in March and early April, they are on the rise again. This is something police will continue to monitor.