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TAVIS, also known as the Toronto Anti-Violence Strategy, is a provincially-funded initiative led by the Toronto Police Service. The goal of the strategy, as stated on the Toronto Police website, is to reduce crime and increase safety in Toronto communities most plagued by crime. TAVIS was established in 2006 to combat the surge in gun violence. The strategy experienced a doubling in the number of gun-related homicides that occurred in Toronto in 2005.
The strategy includes three rapid response teams that can be immediately dispatched to areas where gun violence is taking place. In addition to these teams, more TAVIS police officers are assigned to high-crime neighbourhoods during the summer months.
TAVIS is a strategy implemented by the Toronto Police in areas that are experiencing an increase in violent activity. The implementation process has three phases. In the first phase, additional Toronto Police Officers are assigned to an area that is seeing a rise in violent activity.
Once the situation stabilizes and the neighbourhood is considered safe, the second phase initiates, involving maintenance level enforcement. This phase sees collaborations taking place between the Toronto police service and city and community members and organizations.
In the third phase, the presence of the Toronto police service normalizes to provide support to the empowered community which has been taught to reduce violent activity. TAVIS has been implemented in several areas such as the Keele and Eglinton areas of 12 Division and the Jane-Finch Area of 31 Division, along with other high-crime neighbourhoods. These particular neighbourhoods are chosen due to their disproportionate level of criminal activity in comparison to their size.
Community mobilization, in the context of TAVIS, refers to a strategy led by the Toronto Police Service that involves other organizations like the Toronto Community House and City of Toronto Divisions such as Parks, Forestry, and Recreation. It also includes Toronto Public Health, Social Development, Finance and Administration, and the Toronto Office of Partnership.
These organizations, along with people living and working in neighbourhoods, participate in a joint effort intended to reduce crime rates. This initiative specifically targets communities that are afflicted by higher-than-average violent crime rates. The ultimate aim of community mobilization is to encourage the community members themselves to work together to create safer neighbourhoods.
In principle, TAVIS seems like a sound strategy. However, the police have not been able to produce any verifiable data on TAVIS's achievements. The strategy has introduced several controversial police practices that have been criticized, including practices such as carding and increased police presence.
The implementation of TAVIS has been said to escalate tension between the police and residents in the areas where it has been applied. Residents have expressed feelings of being targeted and harassed by the presence of TAVIS.
Criticism of the program led to nearly a 50% cut in the Ontario budget for TAVIS as of January 2016, even as the total police budget increased. TAVIS's current annual budget is $2.6 million, down from $5 million.
In time, provincial funding for the program will be phased out and resources will instead be allocated to preventive strategies, favouring community prevention over the strict approaches adopted by TAVIS. As of March 2016, new carding regulations rendered the random and arbitrary carding of individuals illegal, with these regulations taking effect on January 1st, 2017.
Lauren Callighen, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, conveyed that the most effective ways to prevent crime and ensure safe communities are to work with local groups and prioritize community-based crime prevention and youth engagement. This follows the principle of giving communities the capacity to direct funding where it is needed the most.
What the future holds for TAVIS is uncertain. Whether the Toronto Police will continue to fund the strategy from its own $47.6 million annual budget, which has seen a $4.7 million increase this year, is yet to be seen.
