Section 4: Police-reported family violence against children and youth
by Shana Conroy
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Child maltreatment, including abuse and neglect, has serious short- and long-term implications and may have physical and emotional impacts on the health, development and survival of victims (Public Health Agency of Canada 2016). While this issue is complex and it is challenging to determine its true scope, it is estimated that globally, during childhood, one-quarter of adults experienced physical abuse and 20% of women and 8% of men experienced sexual abuse (World Health Organization 2016). Identified as a major global public health concern by experts, measuring the prevalence of child maltreatment is particularly challenging as many young victims may be unaware that they are being victimized, may not know how to seek help or may be unable to report their victimization (United Nations 2006; Ogrodnik 2010; Kuoppamäki et al. 2011). At the societal-level, the economic impact of family violence is high; it is estimated that violence against children and youth costs $16 billion each year in Canada (Public Health Agency of Canada 2016). This includes social services, health, educational and judicial services; however, the largest cost is related to employment and lost earnings.
According to self-reported data from the 2014 General Social Survey, one-third (33%) of Canadians over the age of 15 in the provinces reported that they had experienced physical and/or sexual abuse as a child by family or non-family members (see Section 1 of this report). Childhood physical abuse was reported by 26% of Canadians, while 8% reported sexual abuse. Family violence against children and youth, where the perpetrator is a family member or relative and there is an expected relationship of trust or dependence, can have especially serious consequences for victims. Within a family context, immediate and lifelong impacts on victims may include insecure attachment, self-blame, anxiety, dissociation and developmental delay (Royal Canadian Mounted Police 2012). Violence against children and youth may put them at risk for future unhealthy behaviours such as substance abuse and unprotected sex (Public Health Agency of Canada 2016). These impacts may be further compounded if the cycle of violence repeats intergenerationally.
Using data from the 2015 Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey and the 2015 Homicide Survey, this section presents information on police-reported family violence against children and youth under the age of 18. The following analysis highlights the prevalence of violent offences against children and youth where the perpetrator is a family member. The information includes type of offence, relationship to the perpetrator and geographical location. Trend analysis of select police-reported violent offences against children and youth is also presented to indicate changes over time.
This section includes all types of violent offences under the Criminal Code that were reported to police in 2015, ranging from uttering threats to physical and sexual violence to homicide. Non-violent crimes such as theft and fraud, abuses unsubstantiated by police, and other forms of conduct not covered by the Criminal Code are not included in this section. In addition, analysis based on the Homicide Survey excludes homicides that have not been solved by police. While this section provides important contextual information on the incidence of police-reported family violence, the true extent of offences against children and youth in Canada may be underestimated since the data presented here include only incidents of violence that have come to the attention of police and that are covered by the Criminal Code. According to the 2014 General Social Survey, 93% of Canadians 15 and older who reported that they had experienced child abuse did not report the abuse to authorities—police or child protective services—before they turned 15.
Unless otherwise specified, all rates in this section are per 100,000 population. Information on data sources, survey methodology and definitions can be found in the ‘Survey description’ section.
Highlights
Three in five child and youth victims of police-reported family violence were victimized by a parent
- In 2015, there were about 53,500 child and youth victims (under the age of 18) of police-reported violent crime in Canada. Children and youth represented 16% of all victims of violent crime (Table 4.1).
- Among child and youth victims, approximately 16,100 (30%) were victims of family violence perpetrated by a parent, sibling, extended family member or spouse. The majority of these victims (58%) were victimized by a parent (Table 4.2).
- Victimization by a parent was most common among the youngest victims (under one year of age) (84%) of family violence. This decreased with age, dropping to 48% for youth aged 12 to 17 (Table 4.2).
- Rates of family violence were highest for youth (between 12 and 17 years of age) while very young children (under one year of age) had the lowest. However, as previously stated, it is important to note that abuse of the youngest victims may go unreported for a variety of reasons (United Nations 2006; Ogrodnik 2010; Kuoppamäki et al. 2011) (Table 4.3).
- Female children and youth were more often victims of police-reported family violence than their male counterparts (a rate of 281 and 187 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Table 4.3).
- The age at which female and male children and youth were most often victimized by a family member (495 and 252, respectively) was at age 15. Of note, female youth between 14 and 16 years of age were twice as likely as their male counterparts to be victimized by a family member (Table 4.3).
- Nearly half (45%) of police-reported family violence incidents against children and youth were clearedNote 1 by the laying or recommendation of a charge against the accused. Another 27% of incidents of family violence were cleared by other means, such as departmental discretion (9%). The remaining 28% of incidents of family violence were not cleared because of insufficient evidence to lay a charge in connection with the incidents (Table 4.4).
Police-reported family-related sexual offences more than four times higher for female children and youth
- In 2015, physical assault was the most common type of police-reported family violence against children and youth (a rate of 134 per 100,000 population), followed by sexual offences (72) such as sexual assault and sexual interference (Table 4.5).
- While rates of physical assault against children and youth perpetrated by a family member were similar for females and males, the rate of sexual offences against female children and youth was 4.5 times higher than that for their male counterparts (119 versus 27) (Table 4.5).
- As has been the case in the past, kidnapping and abduction were relatively rare occurrences among police-reported incidents of family violence. Specifically, there were 353 child and youth victims of kidnapping and abduction (a rate of 5 per 100,000 population) (Table 4.5).
- Of the 307 child and youth victims of family-related homicide between 2005 and 2015, the most common causes of death were beating (25%), strangulation, suffocation or drowning (24%), and stabbing (17%). Half (50%) of child and youth victims were three years of age or younger (Table 4.6).
- The most common motive for family-related homicide over the past decade was frustration, anger or despair (60%). For nearly one in ten (9%) family-related homicides against children and youth, police found no apparent motive (Table 4.7).
Police-reported family violence against children and youth highest in the territories and Saskatchewan, lowest in Ontario
- Similar to crime in general in 2015 (Allen 2016), rates of family violence against children and youth in the territories were higher than in the provinces. Nunavut had the highest rate of police-reported family violence (1,469 per 100,000 population), followed by the Northwest Territories (917) and Yukon (643). In the provinces, the rate of police-reported family violence against children and youth was highest in Saskatchewan (465) and lowest in Ontario (156) (Table 4.8).
- Of the census metropolitan areas (CMAs), Saguenay reported the highest rate (495) of police-reported family violence against children and youth, while Ottawa and Guelph reported the lowest (82 and 111, respectively). Overall, the rate of police-reported family violence against children and youth was lower in the CMAs (186) than in non-CMAs (325) (Table 4.9).
Family-related sexual assault against children and youth declines for female and male victims
- Between 2010 and 2015, common physical assault (level 1) was the most common type of police-reported family violence against children and youth, despite an overall rate decrease of 18% over the same time period. The rate of common assault due to family violence decreased by 22% for female children and youth and 13% for their male counterparts (Table 4.10).
- Over the past six years, sexual assault (level 1) accounted for nearly all (99%) family-related sexual assault against children and youth. The rate of family-related sexual assault (level 1) against children and youth overall declined by one-fifth (-21%) over the same time period (Table 4.10).
- From 2010 to 2015, rates of family-related sexual assault (level 1) against children and youth were approximately four times higher among female victims. Over this time period, police-reported rates declined by 21% for both females and males (Table 4.10).
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Detailed data tables
References
Allen, M. 2016. “Police-reported crime statistics in Canada, 2015.” Juristat. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 85-002-X.
Kuoppamäki, S-M., J. Kaariainen and N. Ellonen. 2011. “Physical violence against children reported to the police: Discrepancies between register-based data and child victim survey.” Violence and Victims. Vol. 26, no. 2. p. 257-268.
Ogrodnik, L. 2010. “Child and youth victims of police-reported violence crime, 2008.” Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics Profile Series. No. 23. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 85F0033M.
Public Health Agency of Canada. 2016. The Chief Public Health Officer’s Report on the State of Public Health in Canada 2016 – A Focus on Family Violence in Canada. ISSN no. 1924-7087.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police. 2012. “The effects of family violence on children: Where does it hurt?” ISBN no. 978-1-100-54296-6.
United Nations. 2006. World Report on Violence Against Children. Geneva. United Nations Publishing Services.
World Health Organization. 2016. “Child maltreatment.” Fact Sheet. No. 150. (accessed October 5, 2016).
Notes
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