David Batters (July 12, 1969 – June 29, 2009) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

businessman and politician. Batters was a member of the

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (french: Parti conservateur du Canada), colloquially known as the Tories, is a federal political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main right-leaning parties, the Progressive Con ...

in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

, representing the riding of Palliser from 2004 to 2008.

Early life and career

Born in

Estevan Estevan is the eighth-largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. It is approximately north of the Canada–United States border. The Souris River runs by the city. This city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Estevan No. 5. History The ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, worked in the health care field as a pharmaceutical representative with

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...

Inc., and as a political assistant to

Grant Devine Donald Grant Devine, SOM (born July 5, 1944) was the 11th premier of Saskatchewan from May 8, 1982 to November 1, 1991. Early life Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, he received a BSc in Agriculture degree specializing in Agricultural Economics in ...

. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in political studies from the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

Political career

Batters was a supporter of the

Tackling Violent Crime Act The ''Tackling Violent Crime Act'' is an omnibus statute that was given royal assent on February 28, 2008. The statute primarily deals with strengthening gun control in Canada as well as fighting drunk driving, drug-impaired driving and to increas ...

(Bill C-2), which sought tougher penalties for gun crimes and impaired driving and provided new ways to detect drug impaired driving. Batters successfully pressured the federal Liberal government during his term to reclassify

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamphe ...

as a Schedule 1 drug (the most serious category) under the

Controlled Drugs and Substances Act The ''Controlled Drugs and Substances Act'' (french: Loi réglementant certaines drogues et autres substances) (the ''Act'') is Canada's federal drug control statute. Passed in 1996 under Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's government, it repeals ...

. Batters' efforts also helped to secure $15 million in federal funding for the Moose Jaw Multiplex project and to secure the safe return of Saskatchewan residents from New Orleans during

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. In March 2006, he questioned Health Canada on its strategy concerning Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, which he believed was more prominent in

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

communities and would be beneficial to distribute pamphlets on FASD to people on reserves in their childbearing years. At the beginning of 2008, he urged the president of

Telefilm Canada Telefilm Canada is a Crown corporation reporting to Canada's federal government through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in V ...

not to fund films that were objectionable and supported Bill C-10. Batters stated that he ran for office because he was upset with the

Criminal Justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the Rehabilitation (penology), rehabilitation of o ...

system. One of his motivations for entering politics was the murder of his friend Michelle Lenius on November 4, 2003 by her estranged husband. In April 2008 he proposed an amendment to the Criminal Code called "Michelle's Law" that would make it more difficult for anyone accused of committing a personal injury to get bail. Batters was admitted to hospital on July 1, 2008. He announced on September 1, 2008 that he would not be running in the 2008 election because of a battle with depression that included an addiction to

benzodiazepine Benzodiazepines (BZD, BDZ, BZs), sometimes called "benzos", are a class of depressant drugs whose core chemical structure is the fusion of a benzene ring and a diazepine ring. They are prescribed to treat conditions such as anxiety disorders, ...

Death

On June 29, 2009, Batters died by suicide in his Regina home, according to a release from his family. The Regina Police had arrived at his home hours earlier, after receiving a report that he was threatening to harm himself. At the time of his death, he was married to

Denise Batters Denise Leanne Batters (born June 18, 1970) is a Canadian politician who has served as a senator from Saskatchewan since January 25, 2013. She was briefly ousted from the national Conservative Party of Canada caucus from November 2021 to February ...

, who was later named to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

by Prime Minister

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

in 2013."Stephen Harper appoints five new senators"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', January 25, 2012. Several of his former colleagues, including Conservative MPs

Tom Lukiwski Tom Lukiwski (born October 5, 1951) is a former Canadian politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 2008 to 2021 as a member of the Conservative Party. He represented the Saskatchewan riding of Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre from ...

Jay Hill Jay D. Hill (born December 27, 1952) is a Canadian politician who served as the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Prince George—Peace River in British Columbia from 1993 to 2010. He served as Government House Leader ...

and

Andrew Scheer Andrew James Scheer (born May 20, 1979) is a Canadian politician who has served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Regina—Qu'Appelle since 2004. Scheer served as the 35th speaker of the House of Commons from 2011 to 2015, and was the lead ...

and Liberal MP

Ralph Goodale Ralph Edward Goodale (born October 5, 1949) is a Canadian diplomat and retired politician who has served as the Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom since April 19, 2021. Goodale was first elected in 1974 as the member of Parliame ...

, paid tribute to Batters following his death. At his funeral, Harper spoke of the need for greater public understanding of, and compassion for, the struggles faced by sufferers of anxiety and depression.Tonda MacCharles
"Harper mourns former MP's suicide"
''

'', July 5, 2009.

References

External links

How'd They Vote?: Dave Batters' voting history and quotes
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Batters, Dave 1969 births 2009 deaths Conservative Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Saskatchewan People from Estevan Politicians from Regina, Saskatchewan Canadian politicians who committed suicide University of Saskatchewan alumni Suicides in Saskatchewan 21st-century Canadian politicians 2009 suicides