Fact sheet: Quebec

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Victims of police-reported violent crime in Quebec, 2023

• In 2023, police services in Quebec reported 111,573 victims of violent crimes and traffic offences causing death or bodily harm (Table 6.1). This represented 1,240 victims per 100,000 population, a rate slightly higher than the national rate (1,207 per 100,000).^{Footnote 45}
• Most (78%) victims were adults aged 18 and over^{Footnote 46}; 40% of all victims were aged 25 to 44, the most represented age group (Table 6.1). In addition, 15% of victims were youth aged 12 to 17 and 6% were children aged 11 and under. The rate of victims was highest among youth aged 12 to 17 (2,899 per 100,000), followed by young adults aged 18 to 24 (2,182 per 100,000) and adults aged 25 to 44 (1,845 per 100,000).^{Footnote 47}
• Just over half (53%) of victims of police-reported violent crime were victims of assault.^{Footnote 48} Assault victims accounted for the majority (57%) of adult victims aged 18 and over, and 41% of child and youth victims aged 17 and under.
• The second most commonly reported offence was “other violent offences,” which accounted for just over one-third of victims (34%).^{Footnote 49} This category includes offences such as robbery, extortion and uttering threats, among other violent crimes.
• Overall, 8% of police-reported victims of violent crime in Quebec were victims of sexual assault.^{Footnote 50} More than half (55%) of these victims were adults aged 18 and over, and more than one-third (35%) were youth aged 12 to 17. A small proportion (10%) were children aged 11 and under (Table 6.1).
• The majority (61%) of victims of sexual violations against children were youth aged 12 to 17, and 37% were children aged 11 and under (Table 6.1).
• While just over half (51%) of police-reported were female, they made up much higher proportions of sexual assault victims (89%) and victims of sexual violations against children (82%) (Table 6.2).
• Most (72%) victims of homicide, attempted murder and other violations causing death were male, as were more than half (57%) of victims of traffic offences causing death or bodily harm (Table 6.2).
• Male and female victims of police-reported sexual assaults differed notably by age. The majority (56%) of female sexual assault victims were adults aged 18 and over, while nearly half (46%) of male sexual assault victims were also adults.^{Footnote 51}
• Compared with female victims, sexual offences were less frequent among male children and youth aged 17 years and younger: as 5% of them were victims of sexual assault and 6% were victims of sexual violations against children (compared with 25% and 21% among female victims, respectively).^{Footnote 52} However, assault was more commonly reported among male child and youth victims (54%) than female child and youth victims (31%).

Victim services in Quebec

The Office responsible for assistance to victims of criminal offences at the Quebec Ministry of Justice, also known as the Bureau dédié à l’aide aux personnes victimes d’infractions criminelles, contributes in particular to the establishment and maintenance of Crime Victim Assistance Centres or CAVACs (Centres d’aide aux victimes) across the province’s regions. These centres provide information about the criminal justice system, inform victims about the progress of their file and hearing dates, accompany them during court procedures and offer specialized services, including testimony preparation. In addition, CAVACs also work directly with the various police forces in Quebec through 43 police referral agreements. Thanks to these agreements, more than fifty CAVAC workers collaborate closely with police services and offer direct services to victims a few hours or a few days after an offence is reported. Other specialized community-based victim assistance services receive funding from the Fund for assistance to victims of criminal offences (Fonds affecté à l’aide aux personnes victimes d’infractions criminelles) and from other ministries to support, in particular, victims of intimate partner violence, sexual violence and the families of murdered or missing persons. Among these services are the resource lines SOS violence conjugale and Info-Aide violence sexuelle, as well as the Marie Vincent Centre for Expertise in Sexual Assault (Centre d’expertise en agression sexuelle Marie Vincent) and the Association of Families of Murdered or Missing Persons (L’Association des familles de personnes assassinées ou disparues).

The information provided below reflects only the data reported by the Office responsible for assistance to victims of criminal offences.

• In 2023, the CAVAC network assisted 32,879 new victims of criminal acts reported to them.
• Children and youth represented 8% of the new victims assisted by the CAVAC network, more than two-thirds (70%) of whom were aged 14 to 17.
• Nearly three quarters (71%) of newly reported victims identify as women, compared with 28% who identify as men, 1% who did not indicate a gender and 1% who identified as “other.”
• More than one quarter (27%) of newly referred clients were victims of assault, 23% were victims of sexual assault and 0.7% were victims of trafficking, procuring and sexual exploitation.

Note: Percentages may not add to totals due to rounding.

Detailed data tables

Table 6.1: Number and percentage of victims of police-reported violent crime and traffic violations causing death or bodily harm, by type of violation and age group, Quebec, 2023

Table 6.2: Number and percentage of victims of police-reported violent crime and traffic violations causing death or bodily harm, by type of violation and sex, Quebec, 2023

Table 6.3: Number and percentage of female victims of police-reported violent crime and traffic violations causing death or bodily harm, by type of violation and age group, Quebec, 2023

Table 6.4: Number and percentage of male victims of police-reported violent crime and traffic violations causing death or bodily harm, by type of violation and age group, Quebec, 2023

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