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 in the maps and spreadsheet below were collected from publicly accessible media articles, police press release communications, and the occasional social media post between April, 2020 and March, 2021.
To reference and download the raw data for this project:
Alexander McClelland; Alex Luscombe, 2020, "Policing the Pandemic: Tracking the Policing of COVID-19 Across Canada", https://doi.org/10.5683/SP2/KNJLWS, Scholars Portal Dataverse.
To access the source code for our interactive maps and searchable database:
White Paper & Enforcement Reports
April 9, 2020:
April 15, 2020:
May 3, 2020:
July 31, 2020:
Reports with the CCLA
May 13, 2021 (also available on the CCLA’s website here):
June 24, 2020 (also available on the CCLA’s website here):
Annual Review of Interdisciplinary Justice Research (IJR) Journal Article
April 26, 2021 (also available on IRJ Volume 10 Pandemic Justice webpage here):
McGill Centre for Media Technology and Democracy Report
November 3, 2020:
Interactive Map Tracking Charges & Enforcement Related to COVID-19
Updated as of March 15, 2021
Click map to begin exploring
Searchable Database
Updated as of March 15, 2021
Click table to begin exploring
Interactive Map Tracking Launch of “Snitch Lines” and Other Non-Compliance Reporting Related to COVID-19
Updated as of November 16, 2020
Click map to begin exploring
In the Media
Provinces issued more tickets for alleged violations of COVID-19 restrictions during second wave: report, Globe and Mail, May 13, 2021
Civil liberties watchdogs say stay-at-home order opens door to ‘return to carding’, Toronto Star, April 16, 2021
COVID-19 fines will likely make pandemic worse, The Georgia Straight, November 13, 2020
Quebec threatens COVID-19 fines as researchers question if penalties deter behaviour, Global News/Canadian Press, November 4, 2020
Une « pandémie » de contraventions et de profilage, dénonce un organisme, Radio-Canada, July 2, 2020
Majority of Canada's $13M in pandemic fines were issued in Quebec, report finds, CBC News, June 24, 2020
Tickets, fines for coronavirus rules target minorities: CCLA, City News, June 24, 2020
Pandemic fines top $13 million, study says; punitive approach criticized, CTV News, June 24, 2020
New report raises 'ugly' concerns over COVID-related tickets, Barrie Today, June 24, 2020
Canadians have racked up $13M in coronavirus fines, racial profiling evident: report, Global News, June 24, 2020
Quebec led the country in fines for violating distance orders: report, Montreal Gazette, June 24, 2020
Civil liberties watchdog warns of ‘ugly ticketing pandemic’ during COVID-19 outbreak, Toronto Star, June 24, 2020
Millions of dollars in COVID-19 fines disproportionately hurting Black, Indigenous, marginalized groups: report, CTV News, June 24, 2020
Officers Targeted Racialized Canadians When Enforcing COVID-19 Rules: Report, Vice News, June 24, 2020
Plus de 20 000 $ d’amendes liées à la COVID-19 au Nouveau-Brunswick, Radio-Canada, June 23, 2020
More than $20,000 in COVID-19 fines issued, but few details on violations, CBC News, June 23, 2020
(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 News, 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, City News, April 3, 2020
