A new report examining the effectiveness of protection orders in B.C. has found that there are still a lot of gaps when it comes to intimate partner violence.
The report, released by Battered Women’s Support Services, was based on research conducted in 2023 with frontline workers and victim-survivors across B.C.
“We’ve had some tragic cases here in British Columbia where women who have fled their abusive partners have sought protection orders and then have been… allegedly killed by their abusive partner,” Angela Marie MacDougall, executive director of BWSS told Global News.
“So we’ve wanted to, you know, take a look at protection orders and to see to what extent they are meeting the overall objective, which is around keeping victims safe.”
According to the BWSS, femicide rates in the province have reached critical levels.
In 2022, 24 women were killed due to femicide — double the average annual rate between 2010 and 2015. Preliminary data indicates this trend has persisted in 2023 and 2024, underscoring an urgent need for systemic reform, according to BWSS.
Femicide is when a woman or girl is killed on account of her gender.
The report references Stephanie Forster who was shot and killed in her car in Coquitlam in December 2022.
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Her estranged husband Gianluigi Derossi was in court earlier that month on a charge of “fear of injury/damage to property” related to an incident that occurred back in September. He had been ordered not to communicate with Forster and not to go to her residence, workplace or school as a result.
Court documents indicate he was later charged with breaching his conditions on Oct. 2.
Forster had obtained a restraining order, changed her phone number and moved three times in six months.
Forster, 39, was killed on Dec. 8, and while the police investigation is ongoing, her estranged husband, who died days later, is the main suspect.
“This case, along with countless others, demonstrates the critical need for more robust enforcement of protection orders to hold police to their responsibilities to enforce the law and to hold abusive partners accountable to prevent further harm,” the report states.
MacDougall said they would like to see a coroner’s inquiry into every single case where they have someone who obtained or attempted to obtain a protection order and has then been killed.
“We do think that law enforcement should follow their policies, which is to adhere, to follow up on breaches of protection orders, and often they do not,” she added.
“All too often they don’t. And that’s our biggest concern, is the discretion that police services have in following up on breaches. And that is one of our recommendations in the sense of ensuring that breaches are followed up on by police. Otherwise, you know, if it doesn’t have teeth, it just ends up being a piece of paper.”
The family of a B.C. mother of three who was killed earlier this year was in court again last week, as the man accused of murdering her made an appearance.
Terry was found dead at a home on Seabird Island First Nation in April. Her partner, 36-year-old Frederick Paul Charlie is charged with second-degree murder in her death.
Court documents reveal Charlie was convicted of assaulting a previous female partner in the Chilliwack area in January 2022.
“What we are quite concerned about is when we have a circumstance where an abusive partner has breached and then they do not face consequences,” MacDougall said.
“What message is that sending victims? The community has asked victim-survivors to access the criminal system and to report to the police and to do whatever they can. So if they follow through on that and then, you know, and the police do not enforce the breaches, what message is that sending to victims?”
The report recommends five key primary recommendations and five secondary recommendations including.
- Mandatory Coroner’s Inquests for Femicide Deaths: Investigate every femicide case where a protection order or peace bond was sought or granted to uncover systemic failures and drive reforms.
- Extend Protection Orders and Peace Bonds to Two Years: Enhance survivor safety during the high-risk post-separation period by minimizing the need for frequent renewals.
- Full-Length Protection Orders on Without Notice Applications: Prevent risks associated with short-term interim orders by granting survivors uninterrupted protection.
- Prioritize Child Safety in Protection Order Cases: Place the safety of children exposed to intimate partner violence above the presumption of shared parenting time in family law cases.
- Universal Enforcement of Protection Orders: Standardize police responses across jurisdictions with mandatory arrest policies for breaches.
“We want victims to become survivors,” MacDougall said. “And the protection order can be one piece of that. And we want the system, the legal system to ensure that it’s following through on its commitments around public safety.”
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.