'Tight-knit' community rallying together after father, daughter shot dead in Halifax

‘Tight-knit’ community rallying together after father, daughter shot dead in Halifax

Posted by Admin January 3, 2025 World

A pastor in North Preston, N.S., says people in the tight-knit community are grieving with the family of a father and daughter who were fatally shot in the province’s latest instance of intimate partner violence.

Rev. Jivaro Smith of Saint Thomas Baptist Church said he knew both of the victims — 40-year-old Cora-Lee Smith and her father, 73-year-old Bradford Downey — in his capacity as a pastor and also from growing up in North Preston, a historic Black community roughly 22 kilometres outside of Halifax.

“We are a wonderful tight-knit community, but we are not just a community — I say we are a family,” Jivaro Smith told CBC’s Maritime Noon in an interview on Friday.

“We rally around one another and uplift and support one another. When one family grieves, we all grieve together. When one family celebrates, we all celebrate together. That’s the type of community we are in North Preston.”

Cora-Lee Smith and Downey were both fatally shot on New Year’s Eve. Police were called to Gottingen Street around 10:30 p.m. and found the woman dead inside a vehicle, her father wounded next to her, unresponsive. He later died in hospital.

Hours later, her boyfriend was found dead several blocks away in the Halifax Common near the city’s skating oval. Police said 39-year-old Matthew Costain died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

WATCH | New Year’s Eve homicide victims were father, daughter:

Smith said local community organizations as well as 902 Man Up, a non-profit volunteer organization, are working together to organize an event on Monday evening to offer trauma support to the community.

Grief counselors and support workers will be on hand to speak with members of the family and the wider community to help them cope with the tragedy.

For the reverend, he said he has been highlighting the need for the community to put their faith in God.

“I know it’s difficult at times to see Him in the middle of the storm, in the middle of the tragedy … and so I just try to make sure I’m highlighting that his presence is right there, that he’s never left.”

WATCH | 2 recent double murders linked to intimate partner violence:

Smith described Downey as someone who would give you the shirt off his back and “wouldn’t hurt a flea.” He said Cora-Lee Smith was “full of life” and a wonderful person inside and out.

It’s the fourth instance of women being killed by their partners in as many months in Nova Scotia, where politicians have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic.

The declaration in September, which was supported by all parties, was in response to recommendations by the commission of inquiry that investigated the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting.

The commission heard that the gunman behind Canada’s worst mass shooting had a history of domestic violence and had seriously assaulted his spouse moments before he began a 13-hour rampage that left 22 people dead.

Police have said the investigation into the homicides is ongoing, but they are not looking for any other suspects.

For anyone affected by family or intimate partner violence, there is support available through crisis lines and local support services. If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.

If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where to get help:

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.