“An extreme last resort”: Monetary Penalties and the Policing of COVID-19 in Canada

Executive Summary

This essay, part of the Watching the Watchers series on surveillance and COVID-19, critically examines the use of monetary fines as a non-biomedical measure to control the spread of COVID-19 in Canada. Drawing on data from the Policing the Pandemic Mapping Project, a Canadian data justice initiative tracking enforcement of COVID-related laws, the authors argue that fines should not be used as a pandemic response mechanism at all.

The essay develops four arguments for skepticism about monetary fines: fining rests on a weak empirical evidence base, particularly in the context of policing communicable disease; fines can reasonably be believed to cause greater harm than good, especially for marginalized populations; they have been rolled out with minimal education, consultation, or oversight; and the punitive tactic of fining contradicts two other major policy goals pursued by Canadian governments, namely financial relief and the fostering of a collective pandemic response. The authors note that while their discussion is restricted to Canada, the questions and concerns raised are broadly applicable to other national contexts with similar police responses to COVID-19, such as the United States, United Kingdom, Spain, and France.

The essay does not reject emergency legal orders in general, but specifically the use of monetary fines as a mechanism of legal enforcement. It proceeds in two parts: a brief overview of how monetary penalties have been used across Canada since late March, when states of emergency were declared in every province and territory, followed by the four arguments against the use of COVID-related fines by federal, provincial, and municipal governments.