How Calgary Police can help victims of domestic violence

Calgary police and a local advocacy group are urging citizens to look for warning signs after a fatal domestic incident in the Redstone community.

Maninderpreet Singh, 22, is charged with the second-degree murder of Manpreet Kaur, 25, on April 21.

Police said the death was the result of a domestic assault.

Staff Sgt. Glenn Andruschuk of the Calgary Police Service's domestic violence unit told CTV News that reports of domestic violence have increased over the past few years.

“It means to us that families are calling for our help and we can connect them with community support before they experience domestic violence,” she said.

“The police are not here to break up families, we're here to help.”

The Conflict Unit consists of 30 officers who monitor and control chronic and escalating domestic violence situations across the city.

Andrushchuk says the department is integrated with the community and works with other agencies to prevent incidents like the one in Redstone.

Last year, more than 4,000 incidents of domestic violence were reported to Calgary police.

Andrea Silverstone with Calgary's Sagesse Domestic Violence Prevention Society believes there's more going on.

“Only about 35 percent of people who experience domestic violence seek services,” he said. “People think you need a broken bone or a black eye to call the police, but you don't.”

Silverstone says incidents have increased since the pandemic.

“A lot of (people) have mental health issues, housing issues, economic issues, and the more supports and services we have around individuals as they deal with these challenges, the less likely they are to end up in abusive situations. can't get out.”

His advice to Calgarians is simple: If you find yourself or someone you know in a situation that doesn't feel right, know what to do and speak up.

“The most powerful thing we can do is take action to learn to be good informal supporters, so we can ask our friends and family if they're okay,” Silverstone said.

“We've improved talking about domestic violence, but we're still not where we need to be.”

Singh will appear in court on May 14.