The Atlantic provinces are working together to address intimate partner violence, as the Council of Atlantic Premiers releases a decade-long analysis of domestic homicides in the region.
The report released Friday found that between 2012 and 2022, 75 people in the region died because of domestic homicides related to intimate partner violence.
Of those deaths, 33 were in New Brunswick and 25 were in Nova Scotia.
According to the report, 73 per cent of victims were the intimate partners of the accused, eight per cent were children of the victim and/or accused, 16 per cent were third parties killed by the accused, and three per cent were other family members of the victim or accused.
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The oldest victim was 77, and the youngest was just four years old.
The deaths left 94 children without a parent.
The report also highlighted that over a quarter of all homicide cases in New Brunswick were related to intimate partner violence.
“New Brunswick is a very rural province, and we know based on reports like this one that living rurally can increase your chances of being murdered by an intimate partner,” said Maureen Levangie, the executive director of the Domestic Violence Association of New Brunswick.
New Brunswick’s women’s equality minister said this is an urgent concern for government.
“It’s clear for our government that we have to work together on this,” said Lyne Chantal Boudreau.
The study identified 14 recommendations to enhance data collection, strengthen investigative processes and improve services.
— with a file from Rebecca Lau
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