To prevent femicides, psychosocial support for men who have experienced a police arrest would be a key part of the solution, according to the general director of the organization Entraide pour hommes, Geneviève Landry.
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In an interview with LCN, the speaker states that the vast majority of femicides occur when the attacker has already been arrested for domestic violence and that, in her opinion, these men should therefore receive better psychological care to prevent these crimes to prevent.
“In almost all of the femicides we were able to determine that it was the man [en question] She explains that it was known from police circles that he had been arrested for domestic violence. About a quarter of them even had conditions not to approach the victim.”
“What I think would be missing in Quebec is the psychosocial support around this man who experienced a police arrest,” she adds. Obviously there are conditions for release, such as not approaching the victim and keeping the peace, but there is no psychosocial or psychojudicial monitoring that makes it possible to assess the seriousness of the violence and the risk of murder throughout to assess criminal proceedings.”
Although police offer mental health support to men, it is up to them to ask for it, which they often do not.
There is a pilot project within the Entraide pour hommes organization to systematically establish direct contact with men arrested for domestic violence.
“Of course it is voluntary help, but more than 75% of men are willing to talk to the worker, which allows us to assess the risk of homicide, communicate resources and offer them tools to reduce the risk of reoffending “, says Mrs. Landry.
“What we see across Quebec […] “Several social workers are at police stations to intervene and communicate with the victims. However, there is nothing near the attacker and we believe this resource should be added to intervene at the source,” she continues. As long as the attacker is not surrounded and there is no safety net around him, the violence will continue and with it the risk of murder.”
This strategy makes it possible, in particular, to assess the risk associated with these people, but also to ensure monitoring and a certain “safety net” throughout the legal process.
Going to court in particular can be an element that accelerates acts of violence.
“What we see is this […] Going to court is an event that can be stressful, and I don't want to excuse it, but it can lead to stress that leads to him re-offending, as far as domestic violence goes, or stress that leads to that he exhibits compulsive behavior such as following your partner, harassing her, harboring murderous thoughts,” the speaker mentions.
Every year, the Entraide pour hommes organization evaluates numerous cases of domestic violence in Montérégie, including around 80 that pose a risk.
“If we intervene with this man, we must create a climate of safety so that this man can honestly tell us what is going on in his head,” said the Director General. Often I will say that he is not responsible for what happens in his head, but for his behavior, his gestures, what he does.
“Usually, from the moment we clearly state the words, it allows the man to name them and say that he actually has ideas of revenge, that he actually has ideas of killing her, and for him it is one Liberation,” she continues. I know very few men who are comfortable with these excessive thoughts.”
This would be the key to the intervention.
“So once we can get to the truth, once we know what's going on in his head, we'll work with him to deconstruct those ideas and work on the right things, which is the source of those thoughts to work on.” “Build on them and install a safety net. Sometimes we also turn to the people around us to help us with that safety net,” Ms. Landry adds.
There are also rapid intervention cells to protect potential victims if a man is deemed to be at risk.
This ensures that numerous stakeholders from different backgrounds come together to develop a plan to protect the victim and children.
No killings occurred after such an intervention was carried out.
Watch the full interview in the video above