Module d’enquêtes spécialisées en violence conjugale

The module has a specialized investigation unit. This unit deals with domestic violence complaints which require special attention or when a high level of dangerousness or high risk of homicide has been identified.

Thus, the investigators handle sensitive cases or cases involving sensitive criteria, including for instance prior history of domestic violence, the objective seriousness of the assault (strangulation, injuries); significant increase in the frequency and severity of the violence and coercive control, or harassment.

The investigators set up interventions aimed at regulating the follow-up and tightening up of surveillance of attackers after they are discharged to check whether they comply with the conditions laid down by the Court. In close collaboration with the MESVC, priority action relating to cases considered to be urgent is taken by the investigation centres.

The investigators also play an advisory role to the investigators at the SPVM investigation centres. By focusing on domestic violence investigations, the members of this unit develop in-depth expertise on domestic violence which they share for the benefit of their colleagues.

The Module d’enquêtes spécialisées en violence conjugale consults and liaises with all players in the institutional, community and judicial environment at corporate level. This partnership enables psychosocial, medical, police and legal resources to build a safety net around victims.

Moreover, this prevents victims from having to carry out numerous steps, such as obtaining psychosocial services that they need or finding their way through the legal process.

This partnership provides victims access to services throughout the process. This support aims to make it easier to report domestic violence to the police, improve victims’ experience across the judicial system and increase their sense of justice.

In many respects, this partnership also helps MESVC staff to understand the realities faced by domestic violence victims and the various options available to them both within and outside the judicial system.

By having specialized investigators, the module can provide more personalized support to victims which responds to their specific realities and needs.

The SPVM considers that this way of conducting investigations helps to prevent more domestic homicides. In addition, the module’s consulting officer and community consultation officer constantly make sure that the mechanisms aimed at preventing and detecting risky situations are reinforced.

To curb domestic violence on a long-term basis, the SPVM also wants to take preventative action by orienting attackers to community and health organizations that can help them.

For many victims, therapeutic treatment of perpetrators of violence is important. In addition, many organizations consider that rehabilitation of perpetrators of violence is the best way of ensuring public safety in the long term.

In this respect, local police stations 15, 16, 21, 22 and 38 are taking part in a pilot project to refer attackers to help resources, in partnership with the CIUSSS du Centre-Sud, the CLSCs Verdun and Jeanne-Mance and the Clinique communautaire de Pointe-Saint-Charles, starting this fall for a one-year period.

The SPVM introduced a community of practice in relation to domestic violence in 2006. It is one of its best practices. It provides for one resource person in domestic violence matters at each local police station and investigation centre. This best practice is continuing.

Thus, each local police station has a police officer specializing in domestic and intrafamily violence who meets every new police officer in their unit to remind them about their role and duties in this area, and inform them about local organizations and partners. Lieutenant detectives play more or less the same role at the four SPVM investigation centres.

Networking meetings enable police officers specializing in domestic and intrafamily violence to maintain good relationships between the community of practice and local partners. Police officers specializing in domestic and intrafamily violence align with local partners to make presentations to promote healthy romantic relationships.

Expertise and new ways of doing things developed in the Module d’enquêtes spécialisées en violence conjugale are available for use within the community of practice. In some cases, they may encourage and support changes to practices in the Service.

At the same time as the creation of the module, the Division de la prévention et de la sécurité urbaine is already conducting various promising projects with its partners mainly in relation to research and prevention.

These initiatives facilitate new ways of doing things in relation to domestic violence. For example, introducing professional development for police officers on domestic violence is one of the first steps towards improving victim support.

All stakeholders who work with victims, regardless of their scope of practice, are concerned by the myths and prejudices, the consequences of trauma, the distinctive features of domestic violence, the specific needs of certain groups of victims and the rights and remedies of victims.

Processus de dénonciation d’une infraction criminelle dans un contexte de violence conjugale
Domestic and intrafamily violence

MESVC | Behind the scenes

From May 31 to June 1, 2022, the MESVC presented its first report as part of a series of information sessions entitled “Behind the scenes”. It demystified, among other things, various facets of its work in the prevention, investigation and concertation of intimate partner violence, with Service employees, stakeholders and the media.

Présentation du MESVC du SPVM [PDF, in French only]

Fiches d’information

• Module d'enquêtes spécialisées en violence conjugale, SPVM [PDF, in French only]
• Centre d’aide aux victimes de violence conjugale (CAVAC) de Montréal [PDF, in French only]
• Table de concertation en violence conjugale de Montréal (TCVCM) [PDF, in French only]