Bill C-225, known as Bailey's Law, amends the Criminal Code to impose tougher sentences for intimate partner violence, including mandatory life sentences for manslaughter and first-degree murder charges for coercive control cases, following the murder of Bailey McCourt in Kelowna.
On June 9, 2026, a significant legislative development occurred in Canada with the passage of Bill C-225 , also known as Bailey's Law , which amends the Criminal Code to address intimate partner violence.
The bill was first introduced to the House of Commons by B.C. Member of Parliament Frank Caputo for Kamloops-Thompson-Nicola following the tragic murder of Bailey McCourt in Kelowna on July 4, 2025. McCourt was attacked in broad daylight outside her workplace by her estranged ex-husband, James Plover, who has been charged with first-degree murder and is awaiting trial.
The legislation aims to strengthen the justice system's response to intimate partner violence by imposing harsher penalties for repeat offenders and addressing the coercive control often present in such cases. Senator Fabian Manning, who sponsored the bill in the Senate, highlighted the shocking fact that hours before McCourt's death, Plover had been convicted in a Kelowna courtroom on domestic violence charges, including assault by strangulation and uttering threats.
He noted that less than 10 percent of intimate partner violence cases in Canada are reported, emphasizing that the core issue is control. Under Bill C-225, murder charges in intimate partner violence cases with a history of coercion would be classified as first-degree murder, and manslaughter convictions would carry a mandatory life sentence with no parole eligibility for at least 10 years.
Manning stated that the bill would hold repeat offenders accountable and provide greater protection for victims, drawing parallels to global violence against women as described by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The law is named Bailey's Law to honor McCourt's memory and ensure her children know her life was not in vain, while signaling a commitment to combatting intimate partner violence nationwide
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