Weeks after he was accused of the Valentine’s Day killing of his daughter Riya, the first-degree murder charge against Roopesh Rajkumar was officially withdrawn in a Brampton courtroom.Rajkumar, who died in hospital on Feb. 20 of a self-inflicted gunshot, will never stand trial. The evidence from the police investigation will not be made public. He will never be more than the alleged killer of his child, a forever 11-year-old with a toothy grin who loved Drake and red nail polish. Many unanswered questions remain about the death of Riya Rajkumar. Was the police response appropriate? Where did her father obtain a gun? Did he show warning signs, including a history of domestic violence? What motive, if any, did he have? These questions may never be publicly answered, as is often the case following a murder-suicide — but some experts in domestic violence prevention argue they should be so other children can be protected in the future. “It is important, in all these cases, for there to be a thorough investigation into who knew what when. It’s not a finger-pointing exercise, it’s not looking to lay blame. A society needs to be involved in trying to figure out how to prevent a tragedy under similar circumstances in the future,” said Peter Jaffe, the director of the Centre for Research and Education on Violence Against Women and Children at Western University. “Murder-suicides are on the front page and then no one ever talks about them again,” he said. Murder-suicides are investigated by police in the same way as when the suspect is alive — but charges are not laid. When the investigation is completed, the case is closed, said Peel Regional Police spokesperson Sgt. Matthew Bertram. “The public release of information regarding a homicide is done through the trial process. Because this case will not be heard in court, there will not be a public presentation of any evidence obtained or gathered,” Bertram sa ...
|
