Life-Saving Domestic Violence Law Still Not in Action

Six months later, a life-saving promise is still sitting on the shelf. Back in November 2025, lawmakers made headlines with sweeping changes to strengthen protections for survivors of domestic violence. Two key pieces of legislation, the Justices of the Peace (Amendment) Bill and the Domestic Violence (Amendment) Bill, were hailed as urgent, practical tools to close a dangerous gap in the system. When courts close, the plan was to have trained senior JPs step in and issue emergency protection orders on the spot, giving victims up to seventy-two hours of immediate safety. But the system to make it work hasn’t kicked in. Survivors are still left exposed, especially after hours, when help matters most. So, what’s holding it up and when will it finally be fixed? News Five’s Britney Gordon takes a closer look at why a measure designed to save lives is still waiting to be switched on.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

Three lives taken far too soon.” In October 2025, Belizeans were left shaken after a brutal killing shocked the nation. Thirty-five-year-old Angelita Magana, her six-year-old son Tishan Godoy, and her seventeen-year-old daughter Shadia Magana died when Angelita’s former partner, Francisco Godoy, set their home on fire, just days after getting bail for rape and domestic violence charges. The flames took all three victims, and the man who set them.

 

Voice of: Britney Soliz, Cousin of Deceased (File: October 22nd, 2025)

“She was always a good mom to her children; she gave them love and took care of them. Her children grew up with a lot of love. Her daughter Shadia was a girl who, likewise, received love from her mom, and she was very respectful. The boy was also very kind and respectful.”

 

Godoy was out on bail, and Magana feared for her life. She tried to get a restraining order, but the court was closed for the weekend. Weeks later, the government pushed through new laws to let trained senior JPs issue emergency seventy-two-hour protection orders when courts aren’t open. But months on, that power still isn’t active. Authorities are still recruiting and training JPs. President of the Association of Justices of the Peace, Adrian “Danny” Madrid, says that’s why the rollout is taking so long.

 

Adrian “Danny” Madrid, President, Association of Justices of the Peace

“We have over three thousand JPs in the country. We don’t have that much senior JPs, because you have to be a JP for ten years before you can be appointed a senior JP. And now this act is asking the violence domestic violence act is asking that you have to have five years’ experience as a senior justice of the peace. So it makes it even harder.”

 

Madrid says applicants must have at least five years’ experience as a senior JP, or a minimum of fifteen years serving as a JP. Additionally, applicants cannot have criminal record. He shared that these requirements were put in place due to the sensitivity of its application.

 

Adrian “Danny” Madrid

“We will be able to sign that document and arraign the person immediately. We don’t have to wait for the for the magistrate. We don’t have to wait until Monday. And we’re thinking about things like this happen mostly on weekends when the magistrate court is closed. So we’re trying our best to deal with it, to have it work. So we’re appealing to our senior JPs who have more than five years experience. Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid, because you have the protection from the police and from the law.”

 

Accepted applicants will undergo training from the Ministry of Human Development and the Attorney General’s ministry.  Magana’s family recalls numerous incidents with her abuser, despite several attempts to distance herself from him.

 

Voice of: Britney Soliz, Cousin of Deceased (File: October 22nd, 2025)

“The problems she had with that person. She always told me: ‘You know, I’m going to give my report to see what they tell me.’ She always came with us and told us that it wasn’t work time, that they weren’t working, that they didn’t take her report; she always came with that. She tried everything to keep the man from approaching her, but well, they didn’t pay attention.”

 

If enough JPs cannot meet the criteria to apply, the government is considering lowering the years of experience needed as a senior JP. Britney Gordon for News Five.

 

The current plan is to train ten senior JPs in the Belize district and five in each of the remaining districts.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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