With women dying at ‘alarming rate’ from violence, province urged to act

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Advocates for abused women in the London area are urging the province to act in the wake of “unbearable” intimate partner violence that has claimed the lives of several women in the last few weeks.

A bill to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario passed second reading at Queen’s Park and needs to be read a third time to ensure it is passed.

“I just want them to pay attention to what is going on and the seriousness of what is going on,” said Jennifer Dunn, executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre. “We need the province to take this seriously and declare intimate partner violence an epidemic provincially.

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“Also they can’t just put the words out there and say it’s an epidemic without doing anything about it.”

On July 4, a Woodstock woman was shot outside a home by her husband, who then took his own life, Woodstock police said.

The woman is recovering in hospital and police said they are investigating the shooting “through an intimate partner violence lens.”

George Curtis, 44, of London was charged with second-degree murder in the death of Cheryl Sheldon, 62. She was found critically injured in her apartment at 345 Wharncliffe Rd. N. in London on June 22 and died in hospital.

Friends of Sheldon said Curtis was her boyfriend. London police included a statement on intimate partner violence when they accounced the charge against Curtis.

“We know that, among cases reported to police, women make up a large majority – close to 80 pe rcent – of victims of intimate partner violence. We also know that intimate partner violence is underreported,” said deputy chief Paul Bastien said.

Carly Stannard-Walsh, 41, her 13-year-old daughter and eight-year-old son died after they were shot at their home in Harrow, near Windsor. Their bodies, and the body of Steven Walsh, 42, were found by police on June 20.  Steven Walsh died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, OPP said.

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“The initial investigation has determined that this is a case of intimate partner violence,” police said.

Londoner David Yates, 50,  is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Caitlin Jennings. Jennings, 22, died in July 2023.

Tiffany Gates, 30 was found dead in September 2023 along with the body of a man, later identified by Gates’ family as boyfriend Chris Charlton.

Tanya Wiebe, 38, was shot to death, police said. Her boyfriend, 34-year-old Kyle Savage, died of gunshot wounds at a home in Elgin County in January.

“For women to keep losing their lives is borderline unbearable,” Dunn said. “It feels like we are up against a wall.”

London city council declared intimate partner violence and femicide an epidemic on July 25, 2023.

Ninety-four Ontario communities have followed suit.

Jessie Rodger, who heads Anova, a London agency that provides shelter for abused women and counselling, said it is important “to not just declare” a state of emergency.

“For the city of London, one of those things they need to be doing is shelter beds. I think that is loud and clear. There isn’t enough,” she said. “We are full all the time. It takes a woman four times to call before they have a space.”

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The Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability, a woman or girl is killed every 48 hours in Canada.

“We need to be paying attention to this in a way that will actually make it stop — prevention and education from a younger age. Some of that work is being done but obviously not enough,” Dunn said.

Diane Harris, executive director of Woodstock’s Domestic Abuse Services Oxford and Ingamo Homes, a transitional housing agency for women and children fleeing domestic violence, also urges the province to move faster.

“Women are dying across our province,” she said. “This is an alarming rate. Something needs to be done.”

HRivers@postmedia.com
@HeatheratLFP

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