The Minister has confirmed that Clare's Law will be implemented across Alberta. We are now shifting our focus to monitoring the rollout of the disclosure process to ensure it functions as intended.
November 20, 2019
Final supporters
“Clare’s Law” was first introduced in the United Kingdom and named in honour of Clare Wood, a woman who was murdered by her partner and unaware of his violent past.
Clare’s Law, would allow police services to disclose “relevant information” about a partner’s history of violence to people at risk through the “right to know” process, and to applicants through a “right to ask” process. People who feel they are at risk of partner violence can ask police for background information about that partner, and police can proactively disclose it.
My friend Dianne Denovan is a beautiful, educated, professional who decided to get back into the dating world. She met Michael Richard Cole on a dating site. After 3wks of conversing online they met and a relationship ensued. Things seemed to be progressing relatively well (Dianne had some red flags) until one evening.
(Article written in the Calgary Sun) On Oct. 23, 2016, Denovan and Cole, her then-boyfriend, were at a bar taking in a concert when the couple got into an argument.
Cole was removed from the venue but Denovan stayed to enjoy the show.
“There was something off with him all day, I didn’t know he had a history of drug abuse or violence, I didn’t know any of this,” Denovan said of the man she had met on an online dating site seven months before the assault.
Denovan returned home after deciding to continue her night out with friends following Cole’s outburst in the bar.
As she was getting ready for bed, Denovan said she heard a noise behind her.
She turned to see Cole standing there, uninvited and unwelcome, and moments later the man launched into an assault that would leave Denovan hospitalized and fearing for her life.
Denovan said he struck her over the head with a stainless steel lamp, knocking her unconscious, and then proceeded to assault her for nearly four hours.
Documents show she suffered broken bones, a broken jaw, a lacerated eye, large cuts to her face and a bleed on her brain, among other injuries.
Denovan only managed to escape the assault by running to a neighbour’s home when Cole took a break from the beating to go into the garage, she said.
The neighbours called police and Cole fled the scene. He was arrested nearly five weeks later.
Denovan spent three weeks in hospital before being released into her daughter’s care and later spent time at a shelter until Cole was found and arrested.
But beyond the physical toll of the assault, she said she suffered post-traumatic stress as a result of the incident.
Cole spent a little more than two years in prison for the aggravated assault.
He was released Nov. 30, 2018, and Denovan requested he not be set free in Calgary. But “the court felt it was best to release him back into the city where they could keep a close watch over him,” Nikole said.
The family feared he will strike at them or another woman again. They claimed Cole created multiple fake social media accounts and contacted Denovan despite an emergency protection order.
A mere 10 days after being released to a halfway house, Cole went missing on a Saturday. Dianne was not aware of this until the following Monday. After years of recovery,Cole’s disappearance has “reopened” the emotional scars left from that terrifying night in 2016, she said.
A Canada-wide warrant was issued and after Dianne’s daughter posted this story on social media and it was shared all over the world Cole turned himself in. Only after being at large for 30 days. He was sent to a different institution {for fear of HIS safety) and served the remainder of his sentence and got an additional 30 days. He has once again been released, is again allowed to reside back in Calgary and will only have to remain in a halfway house for 3mths.
Parole board documents show Cole has a long criminal history dating back to 1987, with convictions for assault, uttering threats, assault causing bodily harm and at least two other domestic incidents. A total of 13 priors,,,
Through the guidance of Jo-Anne Dusel, who was instrumental in bringing Clare's Law to Saskatchewan, Dianne and I have reached out to the Minister of Justice in Alberta as well as the MLA for Dianne's area. We are hoping to meet with them in person soon.
**Please sign this petition and share it. Let's prevent ourselves or loved ones from a horrific story such as Dianne's**
Updates
Reached 1,000 supporters
September 12, 2019
Reached 100 supporters
September 8, 2019
September 7, 2019
We need to hit the one hundred signature threshold before I submit the formal briefing package to the Solicitor General. This milestone provides the necessary leverage to secure a meeting with provincial policy advisors. Please circulate the petition link through your networks to ensure we reach this target by the end of the day.
395 Comments
I am with a lovely girl. Her past haunts her somedays because of her past.. I know that she is in a healthy, safe, fun relationship with me. I do hope this law is put in place for all domestic violence situation.
I was a victim of spousal abuse and violence. This is an important petition and the right to check the criminal history on a man when entering into a relationship should be available. Women shouldn’t have to suffer the consequences of such actions of an abuser.
Relationship violence is an epidemic and people have a right to know if the person they are with is dangerous. It would allow people to end a relationship before violence begins. These men can be smart and sly and hide this dangerous side until it’s too late and someone is hurt.
Automatic parole needs to go for this kind of charge. 13 previous assault charges! The law needs to change! Previous charges need to be brought up in trials. And disclosure to potential partners of their past by police needs to be opened up.
Clare’s Law is not gender biased- anyone with a domestic violent past should fall under the legislation; but I can’t help but wonder if the shoe was on the other foot how quick it would take the guys to get such protection in place????
The laws need to be stiffer in domestic violence cases across Canada!.
Why is our criminal system so broken that some who with so many offences could be walking free? It is like we are living in the upside down when the Guilty has more rights and Freedoms than the innocent people they scar with lifelong terror.
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Share this petition to help it reach more people.
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The Minister has confirmed that Clare's Law will be implemented across Alberta. We are now shifting our focus to monitoring the rollout of the disclosure process to ensure it functions as intended.
November 20, 2019
Final supporters
“Clare’s Law” was first introduced in the United Kingdom and named in honour of Clare Wood, a woman who was murdered by her partner and unaware of his violent past.
Clare’s Law, would allow police services to disclose “relevant information” about a partner’s history of violence to people at risk through the “right to know” process, and to applicants through a “right to ask” process. People who feel they are at risk of partner violence can ask police for background information about that partner, and police can proactively disclose it.
My friend Dianne Denovan is a beautiful, educated, professional who decided to get back into the dating world. She met Michael Richard Cole on a dating site. After 3wks of conversing online they met and a relationship ensued. Things seemed to be progressing relatively well (Dianne had some red flags) until one evening.
(Article written in the Calgary Sun) On Oct. 23, 2016, Denovan and Cole, her then-boyfriend, were at a bar taking in a concert when the couple got into an argument.
Cole was removed from the venue but Denovan stayed to enjoy the show.
“There was something off with him all day, I didn’t know he had a history of drug abuse or violence, I didn’t know any of this,” Denovan said of the man she had met on an online dating site seven months before the assault.
Denovan returned home after deciding to continue her night out with friends following Cole’s outburst in the bar.
As she was getting ready for bed, Denovan said she heard a noise behind her.
She turned to see Cole standing there, uninvited and unwelcome, and moments later the man launched into an assault that would leave Denovan hospitalized and fearing for her life.
Denovan said he struck her over the head with a stainless steel lamp, knocking her unconscious, and then proceeded to assault her for nearly four hours.
Documents show she suffered broken bones, a broken jaw, a lacerated eye, large cuts to her face and a bleed on her brain, among other injuries.
Denovan only managed to escape the assault by running to a neighbour’s home when Cole took a break from the beating to go into the garage, she said.
The neighbours called police and Cole fled the scene. He was arrested nearly five weeks later.
Denovan spent three weeks in hospital before being released into her daughter’s care and later spent time at a shelter until Cole was found and arrested.
But beyond the physical toll of the assault, she said she suffered post-traumatic stress as a result of the incident.
Cole spent a little more than two years in prison for the aggravated assault.
He was released Nov. 30, 2018, and Denovan requested he not be set free in Calgary. But “the court felt it was best to release him back into the city where they could keep a close watch over him,” Nikole said.
The family feared he will strike at them or another woman again. They claimed Cole created multiple fake social media accounts and contacted Denovan despite an emergency protection order.
A mere 10 days after being released to a halfway house, Cole went missing on a Saturday. Dianne was not aware of this until the following Monday. After years of recovery,Cole’s disappearance has “reopened” the emotional scars left from that terrifying night in 2016, she said.
A Canada-wide warrant was issued and after Dianne’s daughter posted this story on social media and it was shared all over the world Cole turned himself in. Only after being at large for 30 days. He was sent to a different institution {for fear of HIS safety) and served the remainder of his sentence and got an additional 30 days. He has once again been released, is again allowed to reside back in Calgary and will only have to remain in a halfway house for 3mths.
Parole board documents show Cole has a long criminal history dating back to 1987, with convictions for assault, uttering threats, assault causing bodily harm and at least two other domestic incidents. A total of 13 priors,,,
Through the guidance of Jo-Anne Dusel, who was instrumental in bringing Clare's Law to Saskatchewan, Dianne and I have reached out to the Minister of Justice in Alberta as well as the MLA for Dianne's area. We are hoping to meet with them in person soon.
**Please sign this petition and share it. Let's prevent ourselves or loved ones from a horrific story such as Dianne's**
Updates
Reached 1,000 supporters
September 12, 2019
Reached 100 supporters
September 8, 2019
September 7, 2019
We need to hit the one hundred signature threshold before I submit the formal briefing package to the Solicitor General. This milestone provides the necessary leverage to secure a meeting with provincial policy advisors. Please circulate the petition link through your networks to ensure we reach this target by the end of the day.
395 Comments
I am a survivor of domestic violence and was stalked for 5 years. I went to the police and they said he had a clean record but I knew he had previous charges against him. Somehow he was able to get his record sealed.
I am with a lovely girl. Her past haunts her somedays because of her past.. I know that she is in a healthy, safe, fun relationship with me. I do hope this law is put in place for all domestic violence situation.
I was a victim of spousal abuse and violence. This is an important petition and the right to check the criminal history on a man when entering into a relationship should be available. Women shouldn’t have to suffer the consequences of such actions of an abuser.
Relationship violence is an epidemic and people have a right to know if the person they are with is dangerous. It would allow people to end a relationship before violence begins. These men can be smart and sly and hide this dangerous side until it’s too late and someone is hurt.
Automatic parole needs to go for this kind of charge. 13 previous assault charges! The law needs to change! Previous charges need to be brought up in trials. And disclosure to potential partners of their past by police needs to be opened up.
Clare’s Law is not gender biased- anyone with a domestic violent past should fall under the legislation; but I can’t help but wonder if the shoe was on the other foot how quick it would take the guys to get such protection in place????
The laws need to be stiffer in domestic violence cases across Canada!.
Why is our criminal system so broken that some who with so many offences could be walking free? It is like we are living in the upside down when the Guilty has more rights and Freedoms than the innocent people they scar with lifelong terror.
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I am a survivor of domestic violence and was stalked for 5 years. I went to the police and they said he had a clean record but I knew he had previous charges against him. Somehow he was able to get his record sealed.