Calgary police on lookout for 'breakup violence' trend

Calgary police are on the lookout for cases of "breakup violence"in Calgary as the disturbing trend continues to become more common in the United States.

It usually happens between teens and college-age students, and involvesthe person being dumped becoming violent and abusive towardthe person who broke off the relationship.

• Lacey Jones Mcknight's family says system 'failed' her

"We are not seeing it to the degree we are seeing it in the U.S.," said Calgary police Chief Rick Hanson. "It's something we are alerting parents to and young people to, saying [that] violence is not acceptable."

Hanson says in some cases, there is no history of violence until the breakup violence.

The trend has been making headlines in the U.S. in recent years, sometimes with deadly outcomes.

In Calgary, 20-year-old Lacey Jones-McKnight was found dead in a car after breaking up with her boyfriend,who has since been charged with first-degree murder in connection with her death.

Her family alleges hehad been stalking and threatening Jones-McKnight for a month before she was found dead.

Most dating violence happens post-breakup

While high-profile murder cases tend to grab the headlines,Statistics Canada says common assault is the most frequent type of violence committed in dating violence incidents.

Criminal harassment, uttering threats and indecent or harassing phone calls are also more likely to take place between dating couples rather than spouses.

According to Statistics Canada, women accounted for eight in 10 dating violence victims known to police in 2008, and the majority of those incidents took place once the relationship ended.

Dating violence, which encompasses both post-breakup violence and violence taking place during the course of the relationship, madeup seven per cent of all violent crimes in Canada in 2008.

Among women, rates of dating violence in2011were also 60 per centhigher than the spousal violence rate.