Nunavut prosecutors form new team dedicated to sexual violence

Nunavut now has a team of prosecutors dedicated to sexual violence cases.

Launched in April, the team within Nunavut's Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC) office will assist in all sexual violence files in the territory.

On the team are four prosecutors, two paralegals, and a rotation of witness co-ordinators, some of whom are Inuit. Most of them are new hires from temporary funding following the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

In the most serious cases, the lead prosecutors will be inside the courtroom, or assisting the lawyers on the file.

Philippe Plourde, Nunavut's chief federal prosecutor, said the goal of the team is to support victims right from the get-go.

"If we get a file today, we expect the team to reach out to the victim tomorrow, or at least by the end of the week to start those discussions," he said. 

Nunavut has the highest rate of sexual violence in the country, but advocates are hopeful this prosecution team can help empower victims to come forward. 

Jasmine Redfern, president of Amautiit Nunavut Inuit Women's Association, said a stigma of shame for victims of sexual violence still persists today.

"It can be devastating for victims to even acknowledge what's happened to them, to themselves, let alone to have to share it with others," she said. 

Nunavut MP Lori Idlout is hopeful this prosecution team could change that, and effectively prosecute and subsequently reduce cases of sexual violence.

But if the team is successful, she said there could be a rise in cases in the short term. 

"Women will see that, through reporting, they're getting the support that they need, and that might open up women's willingness to share their experience," she said.

One of the shortcomings Redfern sees in the way sexual violence is currently addressed is the siloed approach between different institutions. 

"Often victims who come forward are being given conflicting information and they're being sent to multiple different services and providers," she said.