SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Justice officials hope a new domestic violence program at the Yellowknife courthouse will curb incidents by giving offenders the option to undergo an eight-week treatment program prior to sentencing.

Sixteen per cent of all violent crimes reported in the NWT in 2006 were attributed to spousal assaults Ð the third highest proportion among provinces and territories. Justice officials in Yellowknife have recently launched a new domestic violence program in Yellowknife in hopes of curbing the number of domestic violence cases in the city. - Ian Vaydik/NNSL photo illustration

Crown prosecutor Shannon Smallwood said the program is a step in the right direction toward addressing the problem of domestic abuse in the North.

"We do have a high incidence of domestic violence; so any kind of program that might reduce or prevent these kinds of incidents could be helpful."

The Domestic Violence Treatment Option court began hearing cases last month at the Yellowknife Courthouse.

To be eligible for the option, offenders are first screened based on the incident's level of violence as well as the offender's likelihood of rehabilitation.

Offenders gain entrance into the treatment option program if they are assessed as "low risk" to re-offend. Afterwards, an offender attends court and, before a judge, agrees to the facts of the incident and pleads guilty, said Shirley Kemeys-Jones, director of community justice for the GNWT.

Offenders are then released on court-ordered conditions, such as having no contact with the victim, to keep the peace and be of good behaviour and, if an issue, to abstain from drugs or alcohol, so they can attend an eight-week treatment program operated by the GNWT prior to sentencing.

"People, for whatever reason (who) are involved in hurting their spouse, actually have an opportunity to take responsibility for that and get some help. Very plainly, that's it," said Kemeys-Jones.

There were 189 spousal assaults reported in 2006, according to Statistics Canada.

The NWT had the third highest proportion of spousal assaults - shared with PEI at 16 per cent - out of all violent crimes reported among provinces and territories that year. The highest share went to Nunavut and Quebec at 20 per cent of all reported violent crimes.

The new treatment program is designed to rehabilitate offenders by dealing with underlying issues that led the individual to commit violence against a spouse.

The components include education and, if needed, counselling for substance abuse or anger management. While in the program, the offender's progress is regularly monitored and reports are made available for the court.

The court, a joint initiative of NWT judges Robert Gorin and Christine Gagnon, had its first sitting on March 24, 2011 with three cases heard and again Thursday with seven matters before the court. The next sitting is on April 28 with two offenders scheduled to appear.

Kemeys-Jones said court sessions are divided between progress reports and first appearances in the mornings and sentencing in the afternoons.

Such domestic violence treatment options are already a court initiative in the Yukon and Nunavut, she said.

Planning and preparations for the Yellowknife court began about a year ago, she said.

Based on the results of this pilot project, the domestic violence treatment option could be expanded across the territory and could be expanded to include moderate and high-risk offenders.

News/North's request to interview Gorin or Gagnon for this article was turned down.

In an April 15 e-mail, Tara Kearsey, senior communications adviser for the GNWT's Department of Justice, said the territorial judiciary discussed the request and decided "it would be inappropriate for them to grant any interviews to the media."

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