London Police Services Board asking federal government to add femicide to Criminal Code

The London Police Services Board is working to get the federal government to have femicide included in the Criminal Code of Canada.

The move would make it possible to charge femicide, the killing of a female because she is a female, as a hate crime.

“Every 36 hours a woman or girl in Canada is murdered,” said Megan Walker, a board member of the London Police Services Board and the former executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre.

“What we’re really trying to do is have a definition that we can use for that that will be understood particularly to police officers that may be investigating femicide as a hate crime,” Walker added. “Hate crimes were not differentiated between hate motivated crimes against women and men.”

This prompted the police board to ask the government to define femicide in the Criminal Code.

On average, one woman or girl is killed every two-and-a-half days in Canada, according to a report on femicide in the country.

The report by the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability found that in 2020, 160 women and girls were killed in Canada.

April was the deadliest month, according to the report, with a total of 26 victims.

In late May, the London Police Services Board discussed the hate-related crimes and incidents report which prompted the discussion on femicide.

Once the board collects information from the Canadian Femicide Observatory and community imput, they will draft a letter to local members of Parliament and the prime minister.

“It will take time but I have no hesitation that this will be passed,” Walker said.

Walker said they hope to send the approved letter off to parliament at the end of the summer.

— With files from CTV’s Brooke Taylor