Four years ago in July, Stroup’s youngest daughter, Madeline, was killed in a crash that also took the life of her boyfriend, Hayden Turcotte. On a sunny afternoon, the young couple was driving to a family cabin when a man ran a stop sign on a country road in Abbotsford and slammed into their vehicle. Hayden, 22, died at the scene, while Madeline, 23, died in hospital several days later.Earlier this year, Stroup became involved with a group advocating to change B.C.
Stroup said ICBC offered her family money for funeral costs. The driver of the vehicle that killed Madeline and Hayden did not face criminal charges.B.C.’s wrongful death law is based on a British law passed in 1846 and lags behind other Canadian provinces in terms of how it values human life, said Michael-James Pennie, president of the B.C. Wrongful Death Law Reform Society.
Since then, dozens of other families who have lost children have joined the wrongful death society. In story after story recounted in their own words on the society’s website, parents talk about their losses and the weight of injustice.
That includes British Columbians whose family members have died in police custody or prison, those who have died from medical mistakes in hospital, in motor vehicle collisions, or by burns caused by downed power lines.