The mother of a Windsor woman killed in an alleged act of intimate partner violence is urging the province to declare IPV an epidemic.
Fartumo Kusow spoke along side Windsor West New Democrat MPP Lisa Gretzky during a news conference Friday in Windsor.
"So we ask the government to take that one first step, not to see as the final step, but the one first step," she says. "They could put their support behind all the families, all the front line agencies that are trying to support these women, to get out, stay out, and get the support that they need."
Next week, Gretzky will be at Queen's Park to introduce Bill 173, the Intimate Partner Violence Epidemic Act 2024. It would declare Intimate Partner Violence as an epidemic in Ontario.
The body of Sahra Bulle was found in the 19-hundred block of Northway Avenue on June 6, 2023.
After an 18-year-long relationship with the accused, Bulle had voluntarily checked herself into Hiatus House in early May 2023.
The 36-year-old was the subject of an extensive search after she had not been seen since May 26, 2023.
Her estranged husband, 45-year old Brian Aaron Marbury, was arrested June 5 near the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel, and was charged with first-degree murder as significant evidence enabled investigators to obtain a warrant for his arrest.
Kusow says for 18 years they tried to get her out of her situation.
"I remember May 5th, the last time she went back, and coming back with a black eye. I told her 'don't go back, the next time I'm going to collect you with a body bag.' That tells you, that is so predictable," she says.
Kusow says her death is not just a personal tragedy, but also a stark reminder to the province of all the Sahra's out there that need the support to get out.
"This is not the last step. This is not the solution. But this is one step that we could all say 'we see you, every Sahra. We see you, every mother like me.' We're going to say that this can not happen," she says.
Lisa Gretzky's bill will be debated on Wednesday, April 10 in the Ontario Legislature.
With files from Rob Hindi