Category: Reports

ICPC has published a review of the literature and practices for the prevention of armed violence

Gun violence is on the rise in the Montreal metropolitan area, but also throughout Quebec (Larin 2022), and cold weapon violence is still common. However, several tragic events involving firearms have compelled the Quebec government to invest in the fight against this type of violence.

This review of literature and practice is part of these efforts to better understand the phenomenon of armed violence. It also seeks to share knowledge and experiences from measures put in place around the world to curb violence. However, armed violence is a complex phenomenon that involves more than one issue. Therefore, it is important to adopt the appropriate prevention strategies depending on the context in which armed violence is addressed in order to intervene in a comprehensive and targeted manner.

This report presents four issues that may result in weapon-related acts: 

  • Suicide and self-inflicted violence;
  • Armed violence among delinquent or criminalized youth groups;
  • Intimate partner violence;
  • Incidents related to violent extremism.

This report provides insight and understanding of crime data collected under the Quebec Department of Public Safety's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR 2.2) rules from 2015 to 2020.  

Read the report here (in French)

Presentation of two reports to the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the City of Montreal has experienced a sharp increase in certain firearm-related crimes, most of which involve young people. This issue, which must be addressed through a multi-sectoral approach and which must benefit from a concerted vision, is of particular concern to the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM). The SPVM, therefore, contacted the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime in order to develop its integrated plan to combat gun violence and improve its practices.

On October 27th, ICPC was invited to present highlights of two recently published reports addressing different issues related to gun violence, the first one focusing on the glorification of firearms on social media and the second one on the prevention of gun violence.

This meeting was an opportunity for the team to share best practices from the literature, but also to exchange with 14 members of the SPVM’s internal committee of experts on the issue of the rise of gun-related violence in Montreal, on the initiatives to be implemented at the community level as well as on social media in order to prevent such violence.  

Thank you to the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal for the invitation.

Glorification of firearms on social media and prevention best practices: an overview

As part of the evaluation of public policies on street gangs and firearms, and in order to act proactively to fight crime, the Quebec Ministry of Public Safety mandated the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime to review the knowledge related to the glorification of firearms on social networks.  

 Consequently, this report consists of a recension of the literature divided into two main parts: 

1) Understanding the phenomenon of the presence and glorification of firearms on social networks;  

2) The identification of best preventive practices (implemented in the media and on social networks) to counter gun violence. 

The main objective of this report is to identify the best ways to reach young people on social networks in order to counter gun violence and raise awareness of the issues involved.  

Read the report (only available in French) 

Practice review – Community policing policies

As part of the review of the community-based policing policy introduced in Quebec in 2000, the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime was mandated by the Quebec Ministry of Public Safety to produce an international review of literature on the evolution of public policies on community policing, and to highlight some of the innovative practices that are taking place in Europe and in Quebec.  

The main objective of this report is to provide a state of knowledge on the implementation of public policies related to the implementation of community policing.  

Read the report (only available in French)

ICPC releases the first crime report in the Urban Agglomeration of Montreal

The ICPC has published its first report  on crime in the Agglomeration of Montreal. 

The report provides an overview of the offences that took place in the territory over the last few years, for the nineteen boroughs and fourteen related cities that make up the Urban Agglomeration of Montreal. It allows us, among other things, to know and understand the crime data collected according to the rules of the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (UCR 2.2) of the Quebec Ministry of Public Safety, from 2015 to 2020. 

This report is divided into two sections with six chapters: 

- The first section presents the state of crime in Montreal and specifically addresses the evolving trends in crimes against the person and crimes against property, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the latter, as well as the spatial, geographical and relational dimensions of crime in the territory. 

- The second section focuses on specific issues of concern to policy makers.  

The chapters included in this section integrate an in-depth analysis of the components of offences related to the themes of sexual offences and conjugal and intra-family violence. 

Discover the report here

The report is only available in French.

Publication by an ICPC partner

The UNESCO Chair in Prevention of Radicalisation and Violent Extremism (UNESCO-PREV Chair), Sherbrooke University, partner of the ICPC, published this month an international exploratory study called “Améliorer l’évaluation en prévention de l’extrémisme violent, c’est l’affaire de tous !” (Improving evaluation in violent extremism prevention is everyone’s business!). This study aims to document the experiences, challenges, and learning of researchers and field workers who evaluated radicalization and violent extremism practices and programs in various western countries. It is based on semi-structured interviews of such researchers and field workers done by the ICPC and the UNESCO-PREV Chair in North America and Europe in early 2020.

Read the study (in French): Améliorer l’évaluation en prévention de l’extrémisme violent, c’est l’affaire de tous !

New ICPC publications

The ICPC recently published several reports tackling violence committed and suffered by the youth of Montreal. Specifically, three reports are now available:

1) Problem-Services Arrangement Analysis Report on the Prevention of Violence Committed and Suffered by Young Users of François-Perrault Park in the Saint-Michel Neighbourhood

The Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension borough of Montreal mandated the ICPC to analyze the identified causes and existing protective factors around violence committed and suffered by the young users of the François-Perrault park. The objective of this report is to present and analyze issues relating to this type of violence and how to prevent it.

2) Report on Violence Committed and Suffered by the Youth of Montreal

This ICPC report, mandated by the city of Montreal as part of the Urban Safety Laboratory’s activities, presents an overview of urban safety with respect to violence committed and suffered by youth throughout the island of Montreal.

3) Report on Violence Committed and Suffered by Youth in the Montreal-North Borrough

The Montreal-North borough mandated the ICPC and a team of sociology experts, Mariam Hassaoui from Université TÉLUQ and Victor Armony from UQAM, to do an urban safety audit of violence committed and suffered by youth of 12 to 25 years of age in Montreal-North including a detailed portrait (ADS+ and place-based approach) of the environment (physical, socio-economic, and social-health) in which they evolve, of the crime and violence committed and suffered by this youth, and of the available resources in the area.

See a full list of the thematic reports published by the ICPC

These reports are only available in French.

The ICPC publishes its 2020 Annual Report

The ICPC published its 2020 Annual Report which is divided into three sections: the ICPC as a knowledge centre, as centre for exchange and expertise, and as a centre for cooperation.

First, the report presents the ICPC’s publications in 2020, including two thematic reports, one on victims of sex trafficking in the Americas and the other on hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The Annual Report then details the events that were organized by the ICPC and its partners, as well as the ICPC’s participation in outside events and in activities organized by the organization’s members and partners. Last, the report’s final section presents the ICPC’s technical assistance projects and support to stakeholders, and introduces for the first time, the Urban Safety Laboratory (USLab) and its many projects. The report concludes with an update on the organization’s governance.

Download the report

Making Southern Africa Safe: Promoting Crime and Violence Prevention in the Southern African Region

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) recently developed and approved the Guidelines on Crime and Violence Prevention (‘the Guidelines’). The Guidelines acknowledge that building a region that is safe for all is not the sole responsibility of the police, security agencies, and the criminal justice system. The state and non-state actors within and outside the security sector have a vital role to play. Building upon Aspiration 4 of Agenda 2063 among other sources, the Guidelines recognise the importance of a developmental response in building a safe region and of a partnership between the state and the people at a local level in understanding and addressing the factors that increase the risks which contribute to crime and violence, while, at the same time, developing and supporting those factors that make communities more resilient.

This paper, written in collaboration with the ICPC, provides an overview of the Guidelines. It begins with a discussion on crime prevention and its development within the discourse on safety, law enforcement, and criminal justice. Thereafter, the paper describes the development of the Guidelines and the importance the aforementioned recognition has in the evolution of the SADC, including the promise it holds for sustainable development.

Download the report

Victims of Sex Trafficking in the Americas: Overview of Public Strategies and Future Directions, 2000-2019

It is with honor and enthusiasm that we present this thematic report on victims of sex trafficking in America. This publication aims to provide an overview of public strategies and to establish certain recommendations in light of research and proven findings.

The period 2000-2019 has been a crucial period in the fight against trafficking for sexual exploitation. Indeed, it saw the emergence of a series of legislative and organizational measures specific to this crime. From the Palermo Protocol, the first international legal foundation signed in 2000, to the various national strategies adopted subsequently, this thematic report allows us to understand how the issue of trafficking has been addressed by seven countries in the Americas, including Canada. Nearly 20 years later, time has come to realize that efforts still need to be made to contain this global phenomenon.

The originality of this report is based on the inclusion of a new criterion from the national anti-trafficking strategy: empowerment. This criterion places the victim at the center of our concerns. To be able to accompany him/her in the judicial process, to ensure his/her safety and well-being, whether the victim is a citizen or a migrant, is essential.

Download the report available in French