Nova Scotia mass shooting inquiry: committee ends mandate, chair warns of unfinished work

The progress committee monitoring responses to the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting inquiry has concluded its three-year mandate. Chair Myra Freeman says significant work on gender-based violence and police reform remains.

Nova Scotia mass shooting committee wraps up, but chair says much more work lies ahead

The committee tasked with monitoring government and police responses to recommendations stemming from the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting has concluded its mandate — though its chair is clear that the job is far from finished. Google News CA — Crime (EN) reports that the progress committee, chaired by former Nova Scotia Lieutenant-Governor Myra Freeman, released its third and final annual report on Monday.

The group spent three years tracking efforts by the RCMP and the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia to implement the 130 recommendations issued in 2023, covering gender-based violence, police reform, and community safety.

"A lot of work has happened in that time, and at the same time, we must acknowledge that much more work lies ahead," Freeman said at a news conference Monday in Halifax.

Gains made, but deep issues remain

Freeman identified progress in several areas, including improvements to public alert systems, emergency preparedness, and inter-agency police co-operation. On longer-term social challenges, however, her assessment was more cautious.

"Issues such as gender-based violence, institutional trust, misogyny and broader social and economic inequities that can perpetuate violence will require efforts extending well beyond our three-year mandate," she said.

Gender-based violence was a central theme of the Mass Casualty Commission — the inquiry that investigated the deadliest mass shooting in modern Canadian history. The April 18–19, 2020 rampage killed 22 people and began with the gunman's violent assault on his common-law spouse. The commission filed a 3,000-page report with 130 non-binding recommendations in March 2023.

"Gender-based violence and intimate partner violence is at an epidemic level. There's no question that there is a need for meaningful progress to address these recommendations, but we know that change takes time," Freeman said.

Calls to extend the mandate

Freeman acknowledged that some committee members — including relatives of victims — had wanted the mandate extended to allow continued monitoring of progress.

"Like many members of the committee, I would have liked the opportunity to see and report on the long-term impacts of the work to address the recommendations. However, we knew going in that the mandate was meant to be a starting point — not an end point," she said in a written statement following the news conference.

She called on governments and the RCMP to remain accountable going forward. "It is now incumbent on all of us to continue to hold the governments of Nova Scotia and Canada and the RCMP to account and ensure progress continues," Freeman said.

Trauma therapist: little has changed for survivors

Kristina Fifield, a trauma therapist specialising in gender-based violence, echoed those concerns. She spoke in a personal capacity rather than as a committee member.

"We all have a part in this, in holding ourselves and each other accountable, and again, the government needs to carry this forward … This work is vital," Fifield said.

In her day-to-day work with survivors, she said, the reality on the ground has barely shifted over the past three years.

"In my work day-to-day with survivors, working in community and working with families that are impacted by violence, I would say I'm seeing the same things happening, the same harm coming from the systems that are supposed to protect them," she said.

Many survivors continue to struggle to access key resources and face police and justice officials who may not take their accounts seriously, Fifield said. "The culture of violence and misogyny has not changed."

She argued the committee's mandate should have run for at least five years, and that both levels of government should put formal accountability mechanisms in place to ensure the long-term work is completed.

Federal and provincial responses

Federal ministers Gary Anandasangaree, Minister of Public Safety, and Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice, issued a joint statement Monday affirming the government's ongoing commitment.

"Canada remains steadfast in its commitment to advancing the lessons and recommendations of the Mass Casualty Commission, supporting those affected by the events of April 18 and 19 (2020) and working with all partners to build safer communities across the country," the statement reads.

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston also released a statement thanking the committee and the families of victims for their contributions.

"We will not settle for mere progress. We want to make real, meaningful change. We accept the responsibility of carrying this work forward to make our communities safer," Houston said. "Real change is how we honour and remember those who lost their lives on April 18 and 19, 2020, and those we have lost since the mass casualty. We will never forget them and everyone whose lives have been changed by devastating acts of violence."

Source: Google News CA — Crime (EN)