Dr. Amanda McCormick and Dr. Irwin Cohen with the Centre for Public Safety and Criminal Justice Research at the University of the Fraser Valley have partnered with two police agencies to pilot a police-based strangulation supplement to guide police officer investigations of intimate partner violence files where strangulation has occurred.
Researchers from the University of the Fraser Valley, University of British Columbia-Okanagan, and the Fraser Health Authority in British Columbia are coding forensic nurse records for the presence of strangulation and potential brain injury. This project involves three different samples of patients who sought a forensic nurse exam in an urban emergency room setting in the Fraser Health Authority: persons experiencing intimate partner violence; adolescent patients; and male patients.
Study Investigators: Amanda McCormick, Hannah Varto, Shambhu Adhikari, and Paul van Donkelaar.
Dr. Amanda McCormick from the University of the Fraser Valley is conducting interviews with current or recently retired police officers and Crown Counsel in Canada. This research study is exploring the challenges with conducting strangulation investigations and prosecutions in Canada. The objectives of this study are to provide strategies to enhance strangulation-focused investigations and prosecutions in Canada.
This study was funded through the Canadian Bar Association's Law for the Future Fund.
Researchers from the Centre for Public Safety and Criminal Justice at the University of the Fraser Valley, Fraser Health Authority, and the 'E' Division RCMP are partnering on a research project that will explore the legal outcomes of strangulation files where a forensic exam was sought and a police report made. The researchers will compare strangulation offences reported to the police where a forensic exam occurred to those without this forensic evidence.
Study Investigators: Amanda McCormick, Hannah Varto, Larena Dodd, Tara Haarhoff, and Irwin Cohen
While numerous countries, such as the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia have published research showing that half or more post-secondary students have engaged in "consensual" sexual strangulation, there is currently no information available on this subject in Canada. We are conducting an anonymous student survey about experiences with "consensual" sexual strangulation with a sample of University students in British Columbia.
Study Investigators: Amanda McCormick and Bethany Parkinson
Rural communities experience higher rates of intimate partner violence as well as higher rates of intimate partner femicides. However, the prevalence of strangulation in rural versus urban communities is unknown. This study will examine a random sample of police files to establish the prevalence of police-reported intimate partner violence involving strangulation in rural versus urban communities. The researchers will also examine the risk factor profile present in strangulation files that are reported to the police.
Study Investigators: Amanda McCormick, Irwin Cohen, Tara Haarhoff, Bailey Cooper, and Alyssa Harty
Dr. Amanda McCormick, Stef Ashton, Tara Haarhoff, and Dr. Irwin Cohen have just published an open access article looking at what a sample of police officers in British Columbia know about strangulation and the importance of medical-forensic exams for survivors. Click here to read the full article.
In 2024, Dr. Amanda McCormick and Dr. Irwin Cohen from the Centre for Public Safety and Criminal Justice Research published a study examining what police officers in British Columbia know about strangulation and brain injury, and where there is a need for further training. Download the full report here.