Montreal police, prosecutors launch project to better address strangulation cases

Montreal police and the Quebec prosecutor’s office are launching a pilot project to help authorities better address domestic violence-related strangulations, which they say are among the strongest indicators a victim may eventually be killed by their abuser.

Montreal police Cmdr. Anouk St-Onge said she got the idea for the project while attending a conference in the United States in 2021 on violence against women. There, she realized that what she thought she knew about strangulations — including that choking leaves visible marks or that victims can’t scream — was in fact based on “myths and prejudices,” and that other jurisdictions had better practices than Quebec.

In a phone interview on Tuesday, she said strangulation is “an act of domination and control,” not far behind homicide in its severity. It is also usually part of a wider pattern of abuse, she said.

“The aggressor is showing the victim he can kill them, and at the same time, doesn’t know at what moment he will kill them,” she said. “He can maintain his pressure, and he’ll kill.”

Maya Ducasse-Hathi, a domestic violence prosecutor who is involved in the project, said Quebec’s prosecutor’s office authorized 551 domestic violence strangulation cases last year in Montreal alone. The vast majority of victims are women, and the official numbers likely represent only the “tip of the iceberg,” Ducasse-Hathi said.

Strangulation, she said, “is an infraction that isn’t reported.”

St-Onge says the pilot project will focus on teaching police and prosecutors how to better identify and respond to domestic violence cases in which strangulation is a factor. Officers will get specific training on what evidence to look for and what questions to ask, while victims will be offered more support and given information about the different symptoms they might experience in the hours and days after they are assaulted. St-Onge said police will also focus on encouraging victims to seek medical attention.

As well, officers will have to fill out a new form that will encourage them to ask specific questions to help gather evidence that can help prosecutors build a stronger case to lay charges, Ducasse-Hathi said.

Police said in a news release that the project is based off similar initiatives in the United States and will be deployed in eastern Montreal for an 18-month period.

Amélie Lamontagne, who focuses on head and brain trauma as a co-ordinator for domestic violence prevention group Alliance MH2, says choking is a common act of domestic abuse and among the assaults that can have the most serious long-term health repercussions. 

She said constricting a person’s blood and air flow can quickly lead to brain damage. Choking, she added, can lead not only to head and neck pain but also to trouble speaking and cognitive and memory issues.

“Strangulations are particularly dangerous, especially in terms of crushing blood vessels, because they can create injuries very quickly, in a few seconds,” she said in a phone interview.

In addition, she said, strangulation is part of a “pattern of violence” — meaning it will often happen more than once in the relationship. Damage compounds over time, making permanent injury more likely.

It can also be hard for police officers to recognize strangulation symptoms without training, because victims might not be able to speak properly, and there won’t necessarily be visible marks, she said.

Lamontagne says there has been a growing awareness in Canada to the danger of strangulation, which led to the addition of a new strangulation-related offence to the Criminal Code in 2019.

But she says there’s still more to be done, and is pleased to see Montreal police taking steps to better address “one of the most violent, intense tools in a conjugal violence context.” 

“It’s a person who has the life of another person in their hands,” Lamontagne said.

However, she noted that many victims don’t go to police, and she stressed that education on the dangers of strangulation is needed for anyone interacting with potential victims, including in the health and social services network.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 7, 2024.

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press