Today, November 22, marks one year since the shocking murder of 40-year-old Bernice Cassar, and in remembrance, her family is organising a tribute gathering called ‘Echoes of Silence’ on the site where she died.

The gathering will be held on Triq il-Baċir, Paola, from 7.30am to 8.30 am, one year to the date  of her murder.

On November 22, 2022, 40-year-old Bernice Cassar, from Qrendi, was killed in broad daylight at the Corradino Industrial Estate, Paola, where she worked, being shot twice after having been dragged out of her car. Bernice, a mother of two, died on the spot. Her estranged husband, Roderick, has been charged with the femicide of his wife, and is pleading not guilty.

Cassar’s murder had shocked the country, particularly because she had filed several domestic violence reports about her husband to the police before she was killed.

It was reported that, days before she was murdered, her lawyer had pleaded with police to take action against Roderick for breaching a protection order which was served by the courts.

Only the night before she was murdered, Bernice had filed her last domestic violence report.

In the magisterial inquiry following her death, retired judge Geoffrey Valenzia concluded that the “state system” failed Bernice Cassar, mainly due to a lack of court and police resources, and increasing workload for magistrates which led to delays for cases to be appointed and heard.

Judge Valenzia made several recommendations in the inquiry report, which were issued along with a statement by Justice Minister Jonathan Attard and Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri in February of this year. These included increasing resources and strengthening protection orders.

Attard had assured that the addition of two more magistrates focusing on domestic violence cases would lead to cases being appointed within a more reasonable timeframe.

Upon a recommendation made by the judge for more training in this sector, Attard said that there was training provided over that past year, and more was to come in the following months, adding that the training schedule will be extended to other professionals involved, such as the Children’s Attorneys.

One of the recommendations made by Valencia included the legal definition of domestic violence, in particular what defines a family and a domestic unit.

This was in view that the law deals with instances which are not necessarily considered as domestic violence, such as disputes between tenants who are not in a relationship but are simply sharing a lease.

Attard had stressed that there will be a consultation with stakeholders directly involved in the sector to ensure that any legal changes will lead to these types of reports, which are to be distinct from others, to truly fall under the true definition of domestic violence.

The inquiry had also highlighted the need for more coordination between the Magistrates' Court and the Family Court.

Attard had also said that an assessment was underway to determine whether the Family Court should continue to be part of the Civil Court, or instead be considered as a specialised Court, to allow a judge to deal with and to be aware of the civil and domestic violence aspects within the context of family disputes.

Among other recommendations were the need for a multi-agency approach, electronic tagging, and continuous education agaisnt domestic violence.

The Ministers had also said that standard operating procedures will be made known throughout the police force to serve as guidelines to police officers on how to initiate a first response and how to verify both Temporary Protection Orders and Protection Orders.

Since then, new legislation on the prevention of domestic violence passed in Parliament on May of this year. The law now allows individuals in intimate relationships to submit an application to the Victim Support Agency to verify if their partner has a history of convictions with regards to domestic violence.

The system will also not show allegations or pending cases before Court. The law also ensures data protection, as the police will verify the applicant's right to access the information through specific criteria established by the law.

One might ask, has the State done enough in this respect? In an interview with the Times of Malta last Monday, Bernice’s family said that they have yet to receive an apology for the various system failures which left her two children motherless.

Her siblings went on to say they felt disappointed, and while they have a copy of the recommendations, which was given to the family’s lawyers just a few hours before the press conference pertaining to it was announced, nobody has kept them informed about what happened with the recommendations.

Bernice’s brother, Peter Cilia said that they wanted to know that their sister did not die in vain, and questioned if something has been done with regards to the people in the system which failed her.

On 19 December, 2022, Magistrate Joseph Mifsud said that there was sufficient prima facie evidence for Roderick Cassar to stand trial on indictment.

Cassar stands charged with murdering his estranged wife and mother of his two children. Since being charged, Cassar has attempted to request for bail four times, all of which have been rejected. The compilation of evidence against him continues.

A question remains, however, as to how the system will prevent another tragedy from happening once more.