North Bay police expand intimate partner violence training

North Bay's police chief reaffirmed the force's commitment to tackling the intimate partner violence "crisis," citing a recent alleged attempted murder.

The North Bay Police Service is intensifying its efforts to confront the intimate partner violence crisis, a pervasive issue officials say is affecting communities across the Nipissing District and the entire country.

This renewed commitment follows an Oct. 16 incident where an individual allegedly used a vehicle in an attempt to kill their partner on Worthington Street East after an altercation.

Coordinated organizational focus on IPV

In response, Chief Daryl Longworth is reaffirming the service’s strategic priority on addressing these crimes. He outlined a multi-layered approach that has been developed over the past year and a half.

“We have put a focus on intimate partner violence within this organization over the past 18 months,” he told reporters Tuesday morning following a police board meeting.

The department’s commitment includes the hiring of an additional domestic violence investigator last year. Furthermore, every sworn officer has now received a four-hour training block to better recognize the signs of intimate partner violence.

“We’re stopping the potential violence from developing and continuing into the future,” Longworth said.

Enhanced training for front-line officers, supervisors

The training initiative is now advancing to a more specialized level. Over the coming weeks, all active-duty North Bay police supervisors are scheduled to attend an Ontario Police College-accredited intimate partner violence investigator’s course, with one of the sessions being held locally in North Bay.

By the end of the year, Longworth said “most or all” of the police supervisors that handle IPV cases will be fully trained to ensure investigations are victim-centered, victims have support and justice is properly followed through the court system.

“We’ve got that layer of supervision to make sure that we’re doing a job that looks after the victims, making sure that they’re well taken care of,” Longworth said.

The scale of the issue is significant. According to Victim Services of the Nipissing District, police responded to 545 calls related to intimate partner violence and supported 614 individuals in 2024. These cases include victims of sexual violence, criminal harassment and human trafficking.

National crisis demands systemic response, advocate says

The enhanced police training has been welcomed by advocates who note the national scope of the problem. Cait Alexander, a Canadian model, actress, activist and founder of the organization End Violence Everywhere or EVE, which supports domestic violence survivors, commended the local initiative.

“Everywhere across the country, Canada has a crisis of intimate partner violence and sexual assault,” she told CTV News.

“So, we really do commend this effort.”

Alexander’s group has been lobbying for legislative reforms at both the provincial and federal levels, including bail reform, to better protect survivors and hold perpetrators accountable.

“Intimate partner violence and sexual assault take up about 50 per cent of the justice system itself,” she said.

“We are always incredibly inspired and appreciate when the frontline workers want to do something about this.”

Alexander emphasized the critical role police play in the ecosystem of support for victims, stating they are often the first point of contact for those seeking help.

“The police are the first line of defense and the first line of offence. The police can be that supportive system and connect these survivors to the external resources,” Alexander said.

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Statistics Canada data from 2022 illustrates the pervasive nature of the issue, showing that 44 per cent, or 6.2 million women aged 15 and older, reported experiencing some form of abuse in their intimate partner relationship. Further data from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada found that in 2023, there were more than 123,000 IPV incidents reported to police, primarily by women and gender-diverse individuals.

These concerning statistics underscore the challenges law enforcement face, as only 30 per cent of Canadians who experience abuse ever contact police.