Quebec police officer suspended for 5 days after turning away woman, child fleeing domestic violence

A Montreal-area police officer has been suspended for five days without pay after turning a woman away with her infant daughter in hand when she went to a police station to make a complaint about domestic abuse.

The woman went to file a police report in 2019 with her 15-month-old child in order to seek a peace bond after  her boyfriend had been violent with her. When she arrived at the station, the Longueuil police officer at the front desk refused to meet with her in private and said she had made a similar complaint about him in the past.

He noted the complaint had been dismissed and that this time "she lost her chance," according to a recent police ethics decision. Instead of meeting with her, Officer Alain Tassé said if she has a problem with her partner, she could call 911.

Reached by phone Thursday, the woman who filed the complaint described the officer's punishment as a joke.

"It's a vacation," she said in an interview with CTV News. "For me, five days is not enough."

The woman, whom CTV is not identifying in order to protect her and her daughter, was about to return home to her ex until her friend who accompanied her at the station convinced her to try filing a complaint at another police station.

She did, and this time the second officer took her complaint more seriously. That same night her ex was arrested. Court records show he was sentenced to one year of probation after pleading guilty to assault and criminal harassment.

CTV reached out to Longueuil police for comment on the suspension, but the force did not provide a response before publication time. 

'ARE YOU SERIOUS?'

The woman said she was shocked at how she was treated initially given the serious nature of her complaint.

"I was a little surprised. I was in denial," she said Thursday.

"I was like, 'Are you serious? You won't take care of this?' I mean, the safety of myself and my kid is at stake especially given the abuse that she and I have already suffered."

She said her ex struck her many times during their two-year relationship, screamed at her, insulted her, and abused drugs and alcohol. "He was controlling. It was pretty intense."

Longueuil police

The police ethics committee ruled this week that Tassé violated the code of ethics for police officers in Quebec in that he failed to "preserve the trust and consideration required" in performing his duties. He was sentenced on Monday.

Tassé had no prior ethics decision on his record and the committee emphasized that he showed "no bad intentions" nor any "bad faith" when he refused to meet with her in private.

However, by not taking the complaint seriously, the committee wrote that the officer has sent a "damaging" message to victims of domestic abuse, noting that his response has "caused victims to lose faith in a system that is supposed to be there to protect them."

The committee's decision underscored that "it is not always easy for victims of domestic violence to seek help from the police. Therefore, when they have the courage to sound the alarm, the person who receives them must welcome them with respect, listen to them to understand their needs and support them," the decision read.

"Domestic violence is a very topical scourge and society is very aware of it through what it hears in the media, the police being no exception. Police forces have, for the most part, very restrictive directives regarding events involving such violence."

If it wasn't for her friend who accompanied her, the woman might have returned to the abusive household, according to the committee.

CASE POINTS TO LACK OF POLICE TRAINING: ADVOCATE

A Montreal advocate for women fleeing violence said the woman should have been listened to in the first place since, historically, the moment a woman decides to leave is when she is in the most vulnerable situation yet.

Melpa Kamateros, co-founder and executive director of Shield of Athena Family Services, said showing up at the police should serve as a "dangerous red flag" for police.

"We all know that the highest rate of violence, the gravest incidents of violence, including murder, are very often after the point of rupture when the victim decides to leave," Kamateros said. "So that was a dangerous signal that nobody had picked up."

Melpa Kamateros, co-founder and executive director of Shield of Athena Family Services, said police officers should be better trained at listening to complaints of domestic abuse. (Joe Lofaro/CTV News)

The initial police interaction points to a possible lack of training for front-line officers, she said. Those first interactions are crucial in maintaining confidence in the justice system—the focus of a 2020 report from a committee of more than 20 experts in sexual assault and domestic violence.

The committee made 190 recommendations in their report, Rebâtir la confiance, which aimed to ensure victims are well-supported from the moment they file a complaint.

"A lot of them [recommendations] relate to exactly what has been said in this decision," Kamateros said.

The woman who filed the complaint in 2019 said Thursday she hopes her experience doesn't deter other women from coming forward to police.

"The moment you feel unsafe, that you have doubts…go seek help," she said.

"There are organizations, the police, who can protect us, serve us.

There are a lot of women, there are a lot of femicides, lots of things like that. But there are stories like mine that end by pulling through so don't give up."

SUPPORT NETWORK

Victims of domestic violence can contact SOS violence conjugale at 1-800-363-9010.

Other resources:

• Federation des Maisons d'Hebergement pour Femmes
• Shield of Athena
• Espace Sans Violence
• Regroupement des Maisons Pour Femmes Victimes de Violence Conjugale
• Centre de Solidarite Lesbienne