POLICING THE PANDEMIC
Tracking the Policing of COVID-19 Across Canada
The Policing the Pandemic Mapping Project was launched on 4 April, 2020 to track and visualize the massive and extraordinary expansions of police power in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic and the unequal patterns of enforcement that may arise as a result. The project aims to bring to light COVID-19 related patterns of police intervention to help understand who is being targeted, what justifications are being used by police, and how marginalized people are being impacted. All data are collected from publicly accessible media articles, police press release communications, and the occasional social media post.
If you have been stopped for information, received a ticket, been charged, or are currently facing any other penalty for failing to comply with the government’s new rules, please consider sharing this information with our colleagues at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. The more information they have about the enforcement actions currently taking place across Canada, the more they will be able to help in their education/advocacy work. The CCLA’s intake form is available in both English and French.
White Paper & Enforcement Reports
Interactive Map Tracking Charges & Enforcement Related to COVID-19
Updated as of June 9 2020
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Searchable Database
Updated as of June 9 2020
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Interactive Map Tracking Launch of “Snitch Lines” and Other Non-Compliance Reporting Related to COVID-19
Updated as of June 9 2020
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In the Media
(Mostly) White Covidiots at Trinity Bellwoods Think the Rules Don’t Apply to Them. They’re Right, Toronto Star, May 24, 2020
A Patchwork Response: The Trouble with Legislating Pandemic Rules in Canada, National Magazine, May 11, 2020
‘Policing the Pandemic’ in Canada, CTV News, May 06, 2020
Locked Down: Halifax’s Police State of Emergency, The Coast, May 06, 2020
Canadians Fined for Coronavirus Infractions, BBC News, May 5, 2020
Report: Fines Issued for Breaking Pandemic Measures Top $5.8M, Questions Raised over “Snitch Lines", CTV News, May 5, 2020
Canadians Have Racked Up $5.8M in Coronavirus Fines, Report Says, Global News, May 4, 2020
Got a COVID-Related Ticket? Here’s Why Some Lawyers Say You Might Want to Fight It, CBC News, May 02, 2020
Crowded Shelter or $880 Fine? Homeless Face “Impossible” Coronavirus Choice, Global News, April 30, 2020
Fines, Snitch Lines: Crackdown on Coronavirus Rule Breakers Could Have Consequences, Global News, April 27, 2020
Opinion: Tickets and Fines Unlikely to Help in Battle Against COVID-19, Montreal Gazette, April 23, 2020
COVID-19 and the Rising Costs of Social Distancing: “We’ve Seen a Real Escalation", National Post, April 22, 2020
Harsh Policing and Big Fines Don’t Make People Safer from COVID-19: Criminologists, Canadian Press, April 15, 2020
Who Will Police the COVID-19 Police? Toronto Star, April 15, 2020
Canadian Civil Liberties Association Put Enforcement of Pandemic Orders Under Spotlight, London Free Press, April 14, 2020
Criminal Law in the Time of COVID-19: Part One, Ideablawg, April 12, 2020
Increasing Criminalization During a Pandemic is Not the Solution, National Magazine, April 10 2020
Black Communities Need Support, Not a Coronavirus Police State, Vice, April 09, 2020
Online Map Tracks Police Charges Related to COVID-19, Now Toronto, April 6, 2020
Policing the Pandemic Will Put Marginalized Communities at Risk, Advocates Say, April 3, 2020
Other Related Reports
Man charged with assault in connection with incident teen says involved racial slurs and virus accusations, CBC, May 28, 2020
Police Are Making Pandemic Life Worse for Already Oppressed People, The Tyee, May 21, 2020
Why Are So Many People Getting Sick and Dying in Montreal from COVID-19?, The Guardian, May 13, 2020
Scrutiny of Social Distance Policing as 35 of 40 Arrested are Black, New York Times, May 7, 2020
COVID Cops 902: community tool to track policing during the COVID-19 epidemic, Nova Scotia
COVID-19: trois contraventions dans un salon de massage érotique de Québec, Le Soleil, April 22, 2020
Tuesday in Allan Gardens, Where the Police Guard the Benches, The Local, April 22, 2020
14 arrested after homeless people, activists broke into Vancouver school, CTV News, April 19, 2020
Ottawa father alleges bylaw officer punched him in the face, city denies 'any improper conduct' during ticketing altercation, Ottawa Citizen, April 09, 2020
Refugee advocates beseech bylaw to 'warn and inform' after man handed $880 fine, CBC, April 09, 2020
City of Ottawa accused of going too far with ticketing blitz to enforce physical distancing rules, Global & Mail, April 06, 2020
‘Physical distancing’ fines of $750 issued to homeless people by Hamilton police, Hamilton Spectator, April 06, 2020
COVID-19 is Ravaging Black Communities, Washington Post, April 06, 2020
26-year-old man dead after Peel Regional Police-involved shooting in Brampton, Global News, April 06, 2020
Le SPVM distribue des amendes salées, La Presse, Avril 06, 2020
NYPD’s Aggressive Policing Risks Spreading the Coronavirus, The Intercept, April 03, 2020
Location Data Says It All: Staying at Home During Coronavirus Is a Luxury, New York Times, April 03, 2020
COVID-19: Hamilton police arrest alleged drug dealer — for violating shutdown of non-essential businesses, National Post, March 31, 2020
Trudeau leaves door open to using smartphone data to track Canadians' compliance with pandemic rules, CBC News, March 26, 2020
For the homeless, the coronavirus crisis is untenable – but so is the social-distancing response, Globe & Mail, March 23, 2020
We face a public health emergency, & criminalizing the marginalized can worsen the crisis, Halifax Examiner, March 22, 2020