Intimate partner violence on the rise locally: Victim Services of Algoma

Victim Services of Algoma has been seeing more and more people call their office this year, seeking refuge from intimate partner violence — and often fearing for their own safety.   

But in a growing number of instances, they’re not calling the police. 

That revelation comes at a time when Sault Ste. Marie is receiving national attention in the wake of a grisly shooting rampage — claiming the lives of three children and one adult, with another victim in hospital — that police have attributed to intimate partner violence. 

The shooter also died, turning the gun on himself.

Robin Kerr, executive director for Victim Services of Algoma, says intimate partner violence is not only increasing, but also diversifying in the agency’s catchment area, which spans from the Montreal River area to Spanish, Ont.  

“We’ve actually seen an increase in our office, not only with the amount of calls that we receive, but the amount of individuals — one call is generating more people for us, it could be a mom and kids, it could be a dad and kids,” Kerr said Wednesday in an interview with SooToday. “We’ve definitely seen a change in the gender: We’re having more men reach out to us, and definitely those who are transgender seem more comfortable reaching out to us as well over the phone, versus having to go through police to speak to us.”

There have been 193 calls related to intimate partner violence and 232 individuals assisted by Victim Services of Algoma between January and September of this year. 

Kerr says the trend of people not calling police to report intimate partner violence is concerning because people could “receive safety immediately” by reaching out to police and being removed from the situation. Many of the people Victim Services has helped this year have expressed concerns around what police can actually do when it comes to handling intimate partner violence. 

“They’re aware of the catch-and-release program — they know the accused won’t be held,” said Kerr. “So, do they really want the individual coming back to their home at three in the morning after they’ve been released?”

Many victims have also expressed fears that abusers will “be even angrier” upon release from police custody. 

“The violence has a tendency to increase, and they’re not wrong on that — statistics and history has shown us that those that have been charged with domestic violence can become more aggressive, and there’s less chance of safety,” Kerr said. 

An increasing number of people turning to Victim Services are relaying heightened concerns over safety. Kerr notes that a handful of factors, including the remoteness of some Algoma communities and the increased use of technology — through social media, tracking technology on smartphones or even air tags — now makes it easier to track peoples’ movements.

“Previously, a lot of individuals would say: ‘It’s not that big, don’t worry, I’ll be fine.’ But now, they are saying: ‘I am scared, I don’t know where to turn, I don’t know what to do,’” she said. 

The disturbing murder-suicide in Sault Ste. Marie this week has led to increased calls on the province by advocates to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario. 

The jury at a coroner's inquest into the 2015 deaths of Nathalie Warmerdam, Carol Culleton and Anastasia Kuzyk in Renfrew County made that recommendation last year, along with 85 others aimed at preventing similar tragedies.

Ontario, in turn, rejected that recommendation.    

"Intimate partner violence (IPV) would not be considered an epidemic as it is not an infectious or communicable disease," the government wrote in its responses.

During a media scrum Wednesday, Ontario Solicitor General Michael Kerzner deflected questions about those recommendations in light of the tragedy in Sault Ste. Marie, opting instead to tout $55-million in grant dollars for victim services agencies and IPV training for cadets at Ontario Police College.  

“We're going to continue to ensure that the grant monies are there to help those in need,” Kerzner told reporters. “It's about the victims. It's about the survivors — but today, it's about a community that's grieving.”

Kerr says she’s “not happy with the province’s decision” to reject the recommendation to declare IPV an epidemic in Ontario, which she believes would create safe spaces and communities where people can feel safe to disclose the abuse.  

“It’s an easy recommendation. It doesn’t take any financial gain from anybody to declare this an epidemic — we’re not going to be taking money out of anybody else’s pockets because of it,” she said. “That’s why I don’t understand why such a simple step and the number one recommendation can’t be made provincially. 

“I’m hoping locally, we will be able to have that here in Sault Ste. Marie and all of those smaller communities across the Algoma District, and have every one of those municipalities declare it an epidemic, because people need to realize that it is happening in our communities and it’s happening behind closed doors — and it’s happening in families we don’t expect.”

A number of municipalities in Ontario have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic, despite the province’s staunch refusal to do so. 

The City of Sault Ste. Marie has not declared intimate partner violence an epidemic, but Mayor Matthew Shoemaker said the idea is under discussion. 

“It’s a conversation we’re going to have to have,” he told SooToday on Wednesday. “I’d like to know the local statistics on it, but obviously if the expert panel that studied this — the Renfrew inquest — says this is at epidemic levels across Ontario, they are the ones who studied all the information. I trust that they properly viewed it all and I would have little hesitation in accepting their facts as the proper starting point for our discussion.”

Shoemaker isn’t sure yet whether it will be on the agenda for the next city council meeting, scheduled for Oct. 30, or a later one.

“That is an ongoing discussion at the moment,” he said.

Kerr believes the time is right for the City of Sault Ste. Marie and municipalities throughout the Algoma region to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic. She says by the end of the year, it’s possible the number of IPV victims assisted by Victim Services of Algoma within its catchment area will balloon to anywhere between 250 and 300. 

People experiencing intimate partner violence can reach out to Victim Services of Algoma by calling (705) 945-6905, but Kerr recommends calling police as well.

“We have the services within our area, but if people don’t reach out to the police they’re not going to be taken immediately to safety,” she said. “The important thing is to try to be safe, and then all the services can do a wraparound to make sure this individual or individuals are receiving all of the supports necessary.”

- with files from The Canadian Press