Keira Kagan's legacy lives on in bill to expand education for judges on domestic violence
4-year-old was found dead with her father 2 years ago in what the family believes was a murder-suicide
In the years leading up to her daughter's death, Jennifer Kagan-Viater remembers an escalation in abusive behaviour by her ex-husband Robin Brown.
Though she'd left him years earlier, she worried about the safety of her daughter Keira Kagan during his visits with her.
"The abuse did not stop with separation, and it only got worse," Kagan-Viater said. "Keira was used as a tool to get claws into me."
She said she went to the courts seeking protection for Keira, and expressed concerns about Brown's violent and coercive behaviour, but said she was met with hurdles.
"When I brought forward the evidence about abuse of Mr. Brown, we had a judge, for example, who said that domestic violence is not relevant to parenting and, 'I'm going to ignore it.'"
On Feb. 9, 2020 four-year-old Keira and Brown were both found dead at the base of a cliff at Rattlesnake Point Conservation area in Milton. Kagan-Viater believes it was a murder suicide. The warning signs she addressed in court, she said, were largely ignored.
"Judges don't know how to recognize the patterns of behaviour. Coercive control really is a pattern of harm, most commonly towards women and children," said Kagan-Viater.
A private members bill tabled this week in the House of Commons by Liberal MP Anju Dhillon aims to expand training for judges to include domestic violence and coercive control. Bill C-233, dubbed "Keira's Law," comes after the federal government amended the Divorce Act last year to broaden the definition of family violence .Some experts welcome the bill but say there's still much more to do to ensure victims' voices are heard.
Signaling change
The bill would amend the Judges Act to establish seminars for judges on intimate partner violence and coercive control, in addition to other education they must go through.
"There's still a myth that if a woman says that she's been abused by her partner or her husband, that she's saying it in order to make his life difficult in a custody dispute," said Liberal MP Pam Damoff, who helped spearhead the bill.
"That [myth] persists, even though there have been numerous cases where it's documented that there's been abuse, but it's just not taken seriously."
Keira Kagan was going to change the world. We need to ensure that judges receive training on domestic violence and coercive control. I'm proud to support Bill C-233 to ensure this training becomes mandated in law. <a href="https://twitter.com/forlittlekeira?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@forlittlekeira</a> <a href="https://t.co/DZQku72oca">pic.twitter.com/DZQku72oca</a>
—@PamDamoffThe bill also includes an amendment to the Criminal Code that would allow for the attorney general to order an electronic monitoring device for an accused as a release condition.
Damoff said she hopes it will signal a change in how intimate partner violence is dealt with in the courts.
The amended Divorce Act changes the definition of family violence to include non-physical abuse such as coercive or controlling behaviour, or behaviour that causes a family member to fear for their safety. Under the new act, a judge can now consider these factors when determining the best interests of a child.
Make training mandatory for lawyers, advocate says
Archana Medhekar, a family lawyer and mediator, said she welcomes the introduction of the bill.
"Judicial education is going to definitely make a lot of impact," said Medhekar, who said as a federal bill, it would apply country-wide if passed.
But she said she'd like to see it made mandatory for many other professionals who deal with domestic violence, including police officers, child protection workers, doctors, and notably, lawyers
"In Ontario, we don't have mandatory training for domestic violence for lawyers. B.C. has had it for the longest time. Why can't we do once a year mandatory training for lawyers who can then present the cases better to the judges?" said Medhekar.
Medhekar said she'd also like to see family law cases where there is domestic violence triaged and separated into a different stream. They'd be handled by one judge that has more specialized training in intimate partner violence.
"It allows the parties and even the judge to manage the case … it can move better and there is consistency."
She added that coercion can present itself in different ways in different cultures, and there needs to be better awareness of the warning signs.
WATCH| Keira Kagan's mother and stepfather discuss Bill C-233:
The bill is slated to go to a second reading the week of April 25, and Kagan-Viater hopes it's a step toward further reform.
"This represents an acknowledgement of the system failures for victims of violence, for children in situations of family violence," said Kagan-Viater.
For Keira's family, there's a sense of pride knowing the law will be named after her, but also sadness that it came too late.
"Keira's gone and this will not make a difference for her. It's really more for other people. I'm just hoping that it will save lives," said Kagan-Viater.
"Keira used to always talk about how she would change the world when she grew up. And so we're hoping that this type of legislation would do exactly as Keira set out to do in her life," said her stepfather Philip Viater.
"If it can be a beacon of protection towards persons and children ... there could be almost no greater accomplishment."