December 12, 2005
Dear Honourable Members of the Ontario Social Policy Committee,
On December 6th, 2005, Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin presented the your Honours with his proposal to amend Bill 210 regarding the Ombudsman's authority to investigate Children's Aid Societies. I believe it is about time that these organizations must be held accountable to the public as opposed to their Board of Directors.
It is the Provincial taxpayers that finance their salaries and it has become quite apparent that the Ontario child welfare system is corrupt, outdated and inefficient. They have unchecked power and authority to do as they please and suffer absolutely no consequences for any actions, regardless of the outcomes.
I use Jeffrey Baldwin as an example. (one of many, many children) Mr. Marin discussed the details of this case that is currently before the courts and I am sure you have read some of what happened to this child. The Catholic Children's Aid Society placed him and his three siblings with two KNOWN and CONVICTED child abusers. The CCAS did not even have to go outside of their own building to research this information; the history of Jeffrey's grandparents was in their OWN files in their OWN filing cabinet.
They never checked on these children following placement although three separate requests for the children were made. These children were taken out of the fire and put into the flame by their so called protectors.
So I pose this question to all of you; Who protects the protected from their protectors?
We are angry that we PAID for Jeffrey to be tortured and killed. The CCAS has to date not been held accountable for any of their actions. (or lack thereof) Jeffrey Baldwin's case worker is not facing criminal charges; in fact she is still actively employed! The Executive Director of the CCAS, Mary McConville should also be held responsible for the negligence of her employee's because she should have been more diligent in ensuring reports were properly filled out and children properly cared for.
Complaining about more funding is a poor excuse when the Ontario child welfare system receives a billion dollars a year.
I am asking you to please seriously consider Mr. Marin's request for the authority to investigate Children's Aid Societies. I think that should the committee deny his proposal, the public will react. I encourage all of you to visit the following blog site to read what is being said about this case, it may shed some light on just how outraged people are.
http://jeffreyslawnow.blogspot.com
We demand a voice, we demand accountability from the people who are supposed to be protecting our future generation.
I wish you wonderful holidays with your children and family.
Sincerely,
Amanda Reed
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6 comments:
To suggest CAS agencies are accountable to their respective Board of Directors is a bit misleading, in that these boards are enlisted for the sole purpose of protecting the agency. CAS membership, nominating committees and nominees are restricted to individuals that support the twisted values of these organizations and can be relied on to turn ignore the horrendous abuse they engage in.
Board members are fully aware their organizations act completely outside the law, their code of ethics, and any semblance of fair play. They refuse to act when their employees demonstrate unbelievable dishonesty, maliciousness and negligence. Rather than weeding out social workers whose reprehensible actions have a devastatingly negative impact on children and families, CAS Boards retain high-priced lawyers to do whatever it takes to protect them. The internal discipline process is a complete sham - even to bring CAS abuse to the attention of these Boards, parents are forced to first seek satisfaction from the very individuals that are abusing them. The latest legislation go-round would remove even these bogus safe-guards.
Why not amend the legislation to ensure CAS Boards are composed of its so called "clients" rather than the political social climbers and point-men that sit on them.
Too right! I am being very sarcastic when I say they are accountable to the Board... a committee that is composed of people who are all in bed together and all watching out for each other's asses! The Ombudsman needs so much more authority than what he currently holds, but this is a step in the right direction! (I freaking hope!!)
Elva Botineau (grandma who starved/tortured Jeffry) was beaten by another inmate on the way to court this morning (dec 13/05).....last I heard she was at a hospital being treated.
Court has been put off indefinately!!
Oh well!!
To often when the unspeakable tragedy's happen to children in care, the Children Aid society's run to the government for more money, the abuse excuse!!! they widen their nets and take more children into care, many that do not need to be their, in the process tearing family's apart, costing us, in more ways then one. The court systems time, the time wasted in checking out REAL cases of abuse, since when is a messy house child abuse?? we all who have children,understand they come before, dusting every knock and cranny, after working all day. I have read far to many cases of children being removed because of a messy house, when no other reason could be found, by the agency. The nets will be cast wide,I would rather spend my tax dollars on sending in a house keeper, then sending a child into care, and a family though hell. Too many children are being removed for risk of emotional harm!! Risk of, THINK!! When doctors in this province tell parents NO THEY DO NOT TRUST CAS, and have been threatened by workers, when children that should and could remain with parents with little support from this agency is not a mandated, it should concern us all. It cost us all but MOST important IT IS NOT IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD. research has shown us,history has taught us children do better if every effort can be made to ensure children, have contact with biologic family, when ever possible. In some cases and rare cases this cannot be done, then WE must be prepared to ensure that children in care are SAFE. The common consensus is CAS and child protection industry is corrupted, this government supporting it further and not addressing what is truly happening under their noise, further abusing the very thing we all calm to care about, children. Let the games end, and allow the ombudsmen recourse to investigate cases, and remove some of the power from an agency that is failing Ontario's children and
youth.
To those writing to members of the Ontario Social Policy Committee,I would suggest the most glaring weakness with Bill 210 is that it does not ask children or families if they want to be "saved" by CAS. Their answers would effectively put Ontario's child-welfare industry out of business.
Another significant weakness the Bill is the presumption that children should be sped into adoption. Certainly, that is preferable to the physical, emotional and sexual abuse they experience while being shuffled around CAS foster homes and group homes, but given the choice, the vast majority of these children would be immediately repatriated with their own families.
Readers considering adoption should also realize they may be taking children that are loved and desperately wanted.
I agree with the person who said that children are often removed for the wrong reasons. I know one refugee claimant who went looking for dental care for her children and was put on a waiting list at the local college. The CAS blundered into her life and ripped her 3 children from her including the baby from her breast. Finally to justify their misdeeds they claimed neglect because of lack of dental care. She ended up out of this mess when her immigrant community produced the waiting list. Why not provide free drugs and dental services to children of poor parents instead of accusing them of neglect. It is never really about the "best interests of children."
I know another story where they deliberately obstructed proper psychiatric care for a bipolar child in order to keep him in their care. Once the mother forced the issue in Court, the child received his medication and got better. The family members then went on with their lives together.
This mother said "What the hell do they think they are doing? Do they think that they are now physicians?"
The 22 year old CAS worker had told the medical professional that the child's meds were unnecessary. The psychiatrist freaked and wrote the Court a terse letter that he child and his medications would be best managed at home.
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