Ontario approves motion to support federal bill ‘Keira’s Law’

Two years ago, four-year-old Keira Kagan was found dead, along with her father in Milton following a lengthy custody battle between her parents.

Dr. Jennifer Kagan believes a court system failed her and her daughter Keira, “I was on the stand, I was describing the domestic violence, which they’re supposed to take into account, and the judge says domestic violence is not relevant to parenting, which is false.”

On Wednesday the Ontario legislature unanimously passed a motion to support a federal bill passed in the house of commons known as “Keira’s Law.” The legislation is aimed to ensure judges, justices of the peace, Crown attorneys, court assessors, social workers, and anyone who is a decision-maker in the family court system gets the needed education on intimate partner violence and coercive control.

Oakville North-Burlington MPP Effie Triantafilopoulos brought forward the motion on Wednesday. The area’s federal MP Pam Damoff commends the province’s actions saying, “MPP Triantafilopoulos’s motion in the Ontario legislature are exactly what Dr. Kagan was asking for after Keira’s tragic death. This will save lives and will be Keira’s legacy.”

Kagan says Keira’s legacy is a beacon for safety and protection of other children and their families.

In February 2020, Keira went missing under the watch of her father, 35-year-old Robin Brown. Keira and Brown were found dead down at the bottom of Rattlesnake Point Conservation Area in Milton with injuries consistent with a fall.

Prior to the deaths, Kagan and her legal counsel said they warned courts numerous times about their concerns with Brown. Documents detailed alleged physical abuse and controlling behaviour from Brown. Two weeks prior to Keira’s death, a motion was even put forward to deny Brown’s access to Keira, which didn’t get approved by the time of her death.

Jennifer Kagan still remembers Kiera as “fierce and gentle at the same time, she was a warrior and we want to take that forward with our actions.”