Section 1: Police-reported family violence in Canada, 2019
Family violence, a serious public health issue, can take on many forms, including physical and sexual violence, and emotional and financial abuse (Public Health Agency of Canada 2014). It is an abuse of power within a relationship of trust and dependency. Family violence has immediate and long-term consequences for victims—including physical, mental, cognitive and financial—and recovery depends on the length and severity of abuse.
The costs are not just personal, but affect wider society as well. According to Justice Canada, “a considerable amount of Canadian resources are directed to address this issue including health care costs, costs to the justice system, to employers and businesses, and to social and community services” (Justice Canada 2017). In order to mitigate the impact on individuals, families and communities, it is important to monitor the issue of family violence, and invest in prevention measures and supports for victims. This is particularly true of the COVID-19 era, when Canadians have been subject to lockdown measures and safety protocols that required them stay at home and could have impacted their ability to seek help.
In this section, family violence refers to violence committed by spouses (legally married, separated, divorced and common-law), parents (biological, step, adoptive and foster), children (biological, step, adopted and foster), siblings (biological, step, half, adopted and foster) and extended family members (e.g., grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and in-laws). Victims refer to those aged 89 years and younger.Note
One in four victims of police-reported violence victimized by a family member
In 2019, there were 399,846 victims of police-reported violence in Canada (Table 1.1). Of these victims, one-quarter (26%) were victimized by a family member, which represented 102,316 victims. While just over half (53%) of all victims of violence were female, two-thirds (67%) of family violence victims were female.
Family violence that came to the attention of police was most often perpetrated by a current spouse (31%) or a parent (20%) followed by a former spouse (13%), a sibling (11%) or a child (11%). A larger proportion of female victims experienced violence from a current or former spouse (51% versus 29% of male victims) while family violence perpetrated by someone other than a spouse was more common for male victims (71% versus 49% of female victims).
Family violence increases for the third year in a row, larger increase among men and boys
The rate of police-reported family violence increased 7% in 2019 from the previous year (Chart 1.1).Note Between 2018 and 2019, the rate increased more for men and boys than women and girls (+10% versus +6%). While the overall rate of family violence steadily declined between 2009 and 2016 (-19%), 2019 marked the third consecutive annual increase, up 13% from 2016. Between 2009 and 2019, rates of family and non-family violence had similar decreases (-9% and -11%, respectively).
Data table for Chart 1.1
| Family violence | Non-family violence | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female victims | Male victims | Total victims | Female victims | Male victims | Total victims | |
| rate per 100,000 population | ||||||
| 2009 | 411 | 185 | 299 | 796 | 998 | 896 |
| 2010 | 407 | 180 | 294 | 803 | 966 | 884 |
| 2011 | 384 | 174 | 280 | 742 | 899 | 820 |
| 2012 | 367 | 173 | 271 | 714 | 861 | 787 |
| 2013 | 343 | 163 | 254 | 663 | 773 | 718 |
| 2014 | 328 | 158 | 243 | 628 | 732 | 680 |
| 2015 | 326 | 159 | 243 | 649 | 747 | 697 |
| 2016 | 322 | 160 | 241 | 660 | 742 | 701 |
| 2017 | 332 | 162 | 247 | 692 | 755 | 723 |
| 2018 | 342 | 166 | 254 | 717 | 765 | 741 |
| 2019 | 363 | 183 | 273 | 771 | 823 | 797 |
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Note: Rates are calculated on the basis of 100,000 population aged 89 years and younger. Populations based on July 1 estimates from Statistics Canada, Centre for Demography. Victims refer to those aged 89 years and younger. Victims aged 90 years and older are excluded from analyses due to possible instances of miscoding of unknown age within this age category. Excludes victims of dating or other intimate partner violence under the age of 12 years. Excludes victims where the gender or the age was unknown or where the accused-victim relationship was unknown. Excludes a small number of victims in Quebec whose age was unknown but was miscoded as 0. Based on the Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, Trend Database, which, as of 2009, includes data for 99% of the population in Canada. As a result, numbers may not match those presented elsewhere in the report. Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics, Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, Trend Database. |
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Family-related sexual violence more than five times higher for women and girls than men and boys
In 2019, the rate of police-reported family violence was 276 victims per 100,000 population (Table 1.2). The most common type of family violence was physical assaultNote (accounting for 71% of victims, a rate of 197 per 100,000) followed by other offences involving violence or the threat of violenceNote (50) and sexual offencesNote (28). Differences were noted between female and male victims: while rates of physical assault (249 versus 146) and other offences involving violence or the threat of violence (70 versus 30) were 1.7 and 2.3 times higher for women and girls than men and boys, respectively, the rate of sexual offences was 5.5 times higher for women and girls (48 versus 9).
Seven in ten (71%) victims of family violence were assaulted using physical force (Table 1.3).Note An additional 17% of victims were assaulted with a weapon present, such as a knife, club or firearm. Nearly half (46%) of victims of family violence suffered a physical injury, somewhat higher than those who experienced non-family violence (42%).Note Among those who were physically injured resulting from family violence, nearly all (95%) had minor injuries. Physical injury resulting from family violence was slightly more common for men and boys than women and girls (49% versus 45%).
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Police-reported crime and calls for service during the COVID-19 pandemic
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, the Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics at Statistics Canada began collecting monthly data from police services to track information on selected types of Criminal Code violations during the pandemic. In addition, information was collected on calls for police service—that is, calls for help which may not be related to crime—during this time. While the number of police services that submitted this information varied from one reference period to the next, these data provide insight into the volume and nature of incidents that occurred.Note
Between March and October 2020, selected police-reported criminal incidentsNote were 18% lower than the same period in 2019 (Statistics Canada 2021). Meanwhile, between March and October 2020, calls for serviceNote were 8% higher than the same eight-month period in 2019. More specifically, calls for service related to child welfare checks were up 17%, the largest difference from 2019. These were followed by calls related to general wellness checks (+13%), mental health issues (+12%), child custody matters (+12%), overdoses (+9%) and domestic disturbances (+8%).
In terms of family violence, three types of violent crime could be explored through this data collection initiative: physical assault, sexual assault and uttering threats. While the number of incidents for all types of police-reported crime in this study—family-related or not—was lower during the first eight months of the pandemic compared with the same period in 2019, there was one exception: the number of incidents of uttering threats by family was 2% higher during the pandemic while it was 9% lower for non-family. In contrast, compared to the same period in 2019, family-related physical assault and sexual assault were lower during the first eight months of the pandemic (-4% and -10%, respectively) but numbers were even lower for physical assault and sexual assault when victims and accused were not family (-10% and -21%, respectively).Note
The numbers for selected police-reported crime, while similar in pattern, need to be considered separately. Incidents perpetrated by non-family often occur when people are in the public domain, outside the home. It is expected that as individuals reduced their contact with others outside of their household—as a result of pandemic-related restrictions—that incidents of violence perpetrated by non-family would decrease as the opportunity for these crimes was reduced. Inversely, as individuals spent more time at home with family during the pandemic—while working from home and participating in virtual learning—heightened stress due to social isolation, economic uncertainty and increased substance use, among others, could lead to an increase in family violence (Campbell 2020; Usher et al. 2020).
Based on these police-reported data, a large increase in family violence did not materialize as family-related physical assault and sexual assault decreased, and uttering threats increased to a small degree. It should be noted that many victims might have been unable to seek help, and incidents of family violence that are normally suspected or witnessed by third-party individuals (such as friends and teachers) and reported to police are more likely to have gone undetected during the pandemic.
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Saskatchewan and Manitoba have highest rates of family violence among the provinces
Similar to crime in general, rates of police-reported family violence were highest in the territories. Among the provinces, the rate of family violence was highest in Saskatchewan (519 per 100,000 population) and Manitoba (417) (Table 1.4).Note Meanwhile, rates were lowest in Ontario (173), Prince Edward Island (203) and Nova Scotia (225). Compared with the provinces, rates were notably higher in the territories, with Nunavut reporting the highest rate (3,398) followed by the Northwest Territories (2,689) and Yukon (707).
Women and girls experienced a higher rate of family violence than men and boys in every province and territory. The largest differences in the rate for women and girls compared with men and boys were noted in Ontario (239 versus 106, 2.2 times higher for women and girls), the Northwest Territories (3,739 versus 1,696, 2.2 times higher) and Quebec (478 versus 232, 2.1 times higher).
In every province and territory in 2019, the rate of family violence increased from the previous year, with the exception of Prince Edward Island (-2%).Note The largest provincial increases were noted in British Columbia (+25%), Newfoundland and Labrador (+20%) and New BrunswickNote (+11%).
In the provinces, the rate of family violence was 2.0 times higher in rural areas than urban areas (469 versus 234 per 100,000 population), and this pattern was the same for women and girls, and men and boys (Chart 1.2).Note In rural areas, women and girls had a rate of family violence that was 1.8 times higher than men and boys (606 versus 337). Notably, the difference between rural and urban rates was larger for family violence than non-family violence (2.0 versus 1.4 times higher in rural areas).
Data table for Chart 1.2
| Family violence | Non-family violence | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female victims | Male victims | Total victims | Female victims | Male victims | Total victims | |
| rate per 100,000 population | ||||||
| Urban area | 315 | 151 | 234 | 691 | 787 | 738 |
| Rural area | 606 | 337 | 469 | 1,142 | 966 | 1,052 |
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Note: An urban area is defined as a census metropolitan area (CMA) or a census agglomeration (CA). A CMA consists of one or more neighbouring municipalities situated around a major urban core. A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000, of which 50,000 or more live in the urban core. To be included in the CMA, adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the central urban area, as measured by commuting flows derived from census data. A CA must have a core population of at least 10,000. Rural areas are all areas outside of CMAs and CAs. Rates are calculated on the basis of 100,000 population aged 89 years and younger. Populations based on July 1 estimates from Statistics Canada, Centre for Demography. Victims refer to those aged 89 years and younger. Victims aged 90 years and older are excluded from analyses due to possible instances of miscoding of unknown age within this age category. Excludes victims of dating or other intimate partner violence under the age of 12 years. Excludes victims where the gender or the age was unknown or where the accused-victim relationship was unknown. Excludes a small number of victims in Quebec whose age was unknown but was miscoded as 0. Excludes data from the territories. Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics, Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey. |
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The rate of family violence was 2.0 times lower in Canada’s largest cities—referred to as census metropolitan areasNote or CMAs—than it was in non-CMAs (215 versus 432) (Table 1.5).Note Of the CMAs, rates were highest in Lethbridge (383), Trois-Rivières (360) and Saguenay (352). Meanwhile, rates were lowest in Guelph (111), OttawaNote (114) and London (123).
Among the CMAs, the largest differences in the rate of family violence for women and girls compared with men and boys were noted in Abbotsford–Mission (363 versus 124, 2.9 times higher for women and girls), Thunder Bay (406 versus 140, 2.9 times higher) and Guelph (161 versus 59, 2.8 times higher).
Detailed data tables
References
Campbell, A. M. 2020. “An increasing risk of family violence during the Covid-19 pandemic: Strengthening community collaborations to save lives.” Forensic Science International: Reports. Vol. 2.
Justice Canada. 2017. About family violence.
Public Health Agency of Canada. 2014. Family Violence Initiative.
Statistics Canada. 2021. “Selected police-reported crime and calls for service during the COVID-19 pandemic, March 2020 to October 2020.” The Daily. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 11-001-X.
Usher, K., Bhullar, N., Durkin, J., Gyamfi, N. and D. Jackson. 2020. “Family violence and COVID-19: Increased vulnerability and reduced options for support.” International Journal of Mental Health Nursing. Vol. 29, no. 4.
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