String of three murders in Nova Scotia raises alarm about intimate partner violence

The YWCA Halifax is pictured on June 25, 2024.

Groups working to help victims of domestic violence in Nova Scotia say a recent string of murders of women provides just a glimpse of the extent of intimate partner violence in the province, and they say more action is needed to protect victims.

Miia Suokonautio, executive director of the YWCA Halifax, says that while the three killings in the past month have shocked the public, gender-based violence is much more prevalent than what is reported publicly.

"Whether it's zero (deaths reported) or one or two or three, we know based on our experience that gender-based violence is happening all the time," Suokonautio said.

Since Oct. 18, three murder-suicides involving couples have been reported by police in Nova Scotia, and in each case a man killed his female partner before taking his own life. One was in Yarmouth, N.S., and the other two occurred in suburban Halifax.

A news release last week from Nova Scotia RCMP confirmed that the death last month of a 59-year-old woman in Enfield, N.S., at the hands of her 61-year-old partner was a result of intimate partner violence. The release also confirmed the woman's partner, who killed himself, was a retired RCMP member. That information was released after the woman's daughter, Tara Graham, told news outlets that her mother was killed by her ex-Mountie spouse.

In a news release Friday, Wellness Within -- a Nova Scotia-based non-profit that advocates for women, transgender and nonbinary people -- said it shared the family's frustration in how the RCMP first reported the deaths. The group's release noted partners of people who have worked for police forces face additional barriers and uneven power dynamics when dealing with intimate partner violence.

In an email, RCMP spokesman Cpl. Guillaume Tremblay said the employment status of the former Mountie was originally held to be personal information under the Privacy Act, but the force later released it because he retired more than 10 years ago. Tremblay also said that in the future the force will clearly indicate when an incident is one of intimate partner violence, as long as the statement doesn't put anyone at risk.

One of the barriers to understanding the full scope of intimate-partner violence lies in people not reporting their abuse to police in the first place, which can happen for several reasons Suokonautio said. Some people might come from communities -- such as Black or Indigenous communities -- that have strained relationships with local police.

Others are simply concerned about their safety when thinking about reporting.

"Women are experts at surviving," Suokonautio said. "That's a very practical survival mechanism not to call police, but at the same time, it means that you continue to endure violence."

In a similar vein, the constant presence of an abusive partner can prevent people from calling other resources that can help, such as transition houses and counsellors.

"We know the research is very clear that the lethality goes up when you try to leave," Suokonautio said.

But even when looking at police data, it's hard to keep tabs on exactly how many deaths are related to intimate partner violence. Katreena Scott, who runs the Centre for Research and Education Against Women and Children at Western University in London, Ont., says that some cases of intimate partner violence can fall through the cracks in police reporting because of how deaths are categorized.

"One of the things that's complicated in policing is that there is no specific crime for intimate partner violence," Scott said in an interview.

She explained that police record details of assaults or homicides, including the name and gender of the accused and the victim. While these statistics are reported to data agencies like Statistics Canada, Scott said there's a "second layer" investigators have to peel back to determine the relationship between the two people.

Scott said it's important that police call instances of intimate partner violence what they are, as long as the family of the victim is taken into consideration.

"I think it's important to think about what the family and the surviving members of the family feel most comfortable with and to give them a little bit of time to get to where they feel comfortable with the reporting that's happening," she said.

Suokonautio added that sometimes cases of intimate partner violence aren't explicitly spelled out in police communications to protect the confidentiality of families when children are involved. "It might be helpful to keep confidential details of individual incidents but do more open annual aggregate reporting," she said.

When it comes to getting out of violent relationships, Suokonautio said the most important thing to do is have an airtight exit plan. Women from all backgrounds -- regardless of race, age, social class or immigration status -- experience intimate partner violence, so having an individual plan to leave safely is critical.

For people who might not recognize the signs a relationship might become dangerous, Shannon Pringle, director of advocacy and community response at the YWCA, said there's a number of early red flags that indicate a person's behaviour could escalate into violence. They include constantly checking in on a partner, going through their phone, isolating them from their friends and family, and any form of sexual violence and coercion.

In September, the Nova Scotia legislature adopted a bill declaring domestic violence an epidemic in the province in response to a recommendation from the commission of inquiry that investigated the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia that claimed 22 lives. The murderous rampage began after the killer brutally assaulted his spouse.

When the bill passed, the New Democrats noted that Nova Scotia had the highest rate of intimate partner violence of any province in Canada, with over 30 per cent of women and 22.5 per cent of men who have been in a relationship reporting being physically or sexually assaulted by their partner.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 16, 2024.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page.