Judge recommends changes to foster care

Judge recommends changes to foster care
Mike Franklin, Global News: Thursday, August 12, 2010


Pallbearers carry the casket on March 9, 2010, into the funeral mass at Edmonton's Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples of a 21-month-old girl, who died in foster care.
Photo Credit: John Lucas, edmontonjournal.com
Following the 2005 death of a foster child, an Alberta judge has proposed a long list of changes to the province's foster care program.

Easier access to the foster parents' criminal histories, full body X-rays before children are placed into care, and proper training for foster parents with special respect to Shaken Infant Syndrome.

In the inquiry, the judge found that the caseworker relied heavily on information from the foster parent to provide his own criminal history. The man admitted to his two convictions for assault causing bodily harm, but neglected to mention he had originally been charged with attempted murder.

"One of the concerns raised was the impact of privacy legitslation on the ability of Children and Youth Services to access police investigation files of a prospective foster parent," Provincial Court Judge Donna Valgardson wrote.

The 13-month-old boy died on Nov. 26, 2005, two days after paramedics found him lying in the living room at his foster parent's home. His foster father said that he was playing with his older brother when he suddenly started shaking, his eyes rolled back in his head, and he collapsed.

The autopsy, however, revealed evidence of severe head injuries consistent with shaken infant syndrome.

The father was initially charged with second-degree murder, but pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2006.

NDP children and youth services critic Rachel Notley said a kinship care report released in 2009 did not describe the level of scrutiny Elson said is taking place.

"It acknowledged they were still putting kids in temporary care without the criminal record check being completed," she said, adding the government will have trouble following the recommendations unless they hire more staff.

"They're not going to be able to do it with the staff they have -- they've cut funding in this area since this inquiry was completed."

The report, released nearly two years after the fatality inquiry wrapped up, brought little comfort to the boy's mother.

"The pain and the loss of my son will always be there," she said Wednesday. "I live with the pain every day. I see people walk down the street holding their son's hand, and I wonder, why couldn't that be me? "The guy only got four-and-a-half years for killing my son and I've got a lifetime of pain to live through."

She said she fears the recommendations will not be implemented because they're not binding. Even if the law changes to allow caseworkers to access criminal histories, it's still not mandatory for caseworkers to read them.

"I hope that this will help other children. My son's death has to come to something. I hope. But who knows."

With files from the Journal

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