Yesterday’s commentary overflowed with my anger at our current Liberal government for their failure to fix Canada’s Firearm Prohibition Order system.  That failure, or more accurately this government’s flat-out refusal to fix this broken system cost Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman her life.

In today’s commentary I dig deeper into the story of her senseless murder.

I do so in the hopes I can inspire this Liberal government – a government far more intent on virtue-signaling than taking action – to finally fix our broken Firearm Prohibition Order system so the next Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman doesn’t have to die.

Can I help force this Liberal government to lift a finger?

Only time will tell.

Until then, this young woman’s story deserves to be told. It’s a cautionary tale, a dire warning for anyone stuck in an abusive relationship to get help before it’s too late, as it is for Darian.

On Tuesday, July 28, 2020,officers of the Peel Regional Police were notified of the sound of gunfire in a residential neighbourhood in the City of Brampton.

When they arrived, they found 25-year-old Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman dead from gunshot wounds.

Darnell Reid apparently tried to kill himself as well, but failed. He was taken to hospital where he remains in critical condition.

Just two months before [allegedly] taking the life of this beautiful young woman, Darnell Reid was arrested (again) and charged with violating a restraining order and possessing an illegal firearm in contravention of a Firearm Prohibition Order (again).

On the day he [allegedly] murdered Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman, Darnell Reid was under a restraining order to keep him away from the young woman, an order he violated at least four times previously.

That order stated Reid must stay at least 100 metres away from Henderson-Bellman and not go near the home where her grandparents lived.

“They were known to each other and they were believed to be in a relationship with each other at this time,” said Peel Regional Police Constable Kyle Villers.

“I don’t know what happened or who did what to who at this point,” Villers said.

“All I know is that a female died as a result of the incident that happened today and a male is in hospital with serious injuries. We can only imagine what they families are going through [but] it’s too early to speculate as to what actually happened.”

Constable Villers said police were not searching for anyone else in connection with Henderson-Bellman’s murder, even though they had not recovered a murder weapon at that point.

“Beautiful Inside and Out”

“Papa, I love you and I’ll see you later.”

Those were the last words Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman said as she left her grandparents’ home in Halton Hills last week.

Florence Bellman and Paul Henderson, Darian’s parents, raised the young woman since she was three years old. They remembered her as a person who was “beautiful inside and out.”

“Our daughter was just beautiful, a beautiful big-hearted person, and she cared about people. When people were in trouble she would go out of her way to help them. If somebody down the street had no food, she would go get food for them, that’s the way she was,” said Henderson.

The couple said their daughter was horribly abused by Reid, yet maintained an on-again/off-again relationship with him. They cannot comprehend why Darian went to Reid’s house that fateful day.

One of the conditions of Reid’s release on his most recent charges was he must wear a GPS monitoring device. Since Reid couldn’t go to her, somehow he lured Darian Henderson-Bellman to his home and, ultimately, to her own death.

Now Bellman and Henderson are speaking out because they don’t want their grand-daughter’s death to be for nothing.

“She was terrified of him, we knew that,” said Florence Bellman. “She was terrified and we said, ‘If you stay in and not go out at all, we’ll protect you in here.’ But when you’re asking a 25-year-old not to see daylight, it doesn’t make any sense to them because why can’t she go to her friends? Why can’t she be with her friends?”

“If one girl could be pulled away one of these animals, and our daughter didn’t die in vain … If one girl could be pulled away without being victimized, as hundreds are, that would be a good thing to us,” said Paul Henderson.

Seek Help

If you or someone you know suffers in a violent relationship, please seek help before it’s too late for you, as it is for Darian Hailey Henderson-Bellman.

Crisis Services Canada – Call 1-833-456-4566 / Text 45645

https://CrisisServicesCanada.ca

CALL 911 right away if your life or someone else’s is in immediate danger.