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Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Is she joking??

Death cannot cloud work
Apr. 11, 2006. 01:00 AM
Abusers convicted of killing grandchild
April 8.
When a child dies or is maltreated, especially when the circumstances were preventable, demands for a full and thorough investigation are warranted. It is important that every effort be made to examine what went wrong and to identify the checks and balances that must be put in place to prevent future tragedies. Moreover, it is important that the implementation of recommendations receive both priority and adequate resources.
In the case of Jeffrey Baldwin, the 5-year-old child who died of malnutrition while in the care of his grandparents, the Toronto Catholic Children's Aid Society (CCAS) has acknowledged that its records were not checked when the grandparents applied to the courts for custody of Jeffrey a number of years ago. The CCAS has since put protocols in place to ensure this will not happen again.
While the hardships associated with Jeffrey Baldwin's tragic death must not be diminished, the Ontario Association of Social Workers cautions against allowing his death to overshadow the important and effective work the CCAS and other child welfare agencies carry out each year.
In Ontario, highly skilled child welfare staff, many of whom are social workers, conduct more than 82,000 investigations a year and provide services to 30,000 children in care. They operate seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Caseloads are complex and the demands on staff immense. Professionals working in this important, yet often times maligned role, need the support of the community as they continue to protect our most vulnerable citizens, our children.

Beverley J. Antle, President, Ontario Association of Social Workers, Toronto

_____________________________________________________
Well said!

Change child welfare rules
Apr. 11, 2006. 01:00 AM
Abusers convicted of killing grandchild
April 8.
Jeffrey Baldwin's death is a tragedy. Everyone from government to children's aid societies to the people who care for children and youth in need of protection like Jeffrey must learn from his experiences (and those of his siblings) so they are not repeated.
In our view, there needs to be fundamental changes to Ontario's child welfare system to avoid the chances of something similar happening to another child in the future.
Changes are needed to ensure that children are placed with the best people to provide proper care; to provide the ability for a third party to independently review the child's care and to fund the child's care and treatment accordingly. In short, providing children with the care they need, not just the "minimum" as can sometimes be the case.
As providers of high-quality treatment foster care and group home care to more than 4,000 children and youth in Ontario yearly, our members continue to work with the Ontario government, children's aid societies and other partners to recommend ways to make the system better.
Jeffrey's death must serve as a catalyst to ensure vulnerable children can get the best chance at a good life.
Richard Solomon, Executive Director, Ontario Association of Residences Treating Youth, Richmond Hill

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please ensure to make time this evening to watch "Failing Jeffrey" on the Fifth Estate. It's tonight (April 12) at 9:00 p.m. on CBC.

Progress to date:
-Bottineau/Kidman convicted of murder (and unlawful confinement);
-Coroners Inquest to be held;
-Ombudsman pressing for oversight;
-Lawsuit lauched by Childrens Lawyer against CCAS.

The sun is starting to peek out from behind the dark clouds folks!

Thanks to Amanda and others, Jeffrey's death will not be in vain. Let's keep up the pressure.

I look forward to the unveiling of the Plaque in his memory. Let's do it soon.

Anonymous said...

yes the social workers are a joke, why are so many children in CARE. do you know they treat them like dogs, and the press pays more attention to the seal hunt and puppy black market, as children are ripped away daily from parents for nothing, but profit.
And what about the children that are murdered by foster parents, and in group homes, they call them group hell for a reason go visit one. They want more children now to make more money for adoptions. This is really sick people, please read some of the books written by experts who spent years in the field, What's wrong with Children Rights, is and excellent book, and its very true. And every lawyer out there know it. So do the politicians, some have said so.
Child protection is mass criminal activity,
Senator A Cools , said the family courts needed to be looked into years ago. Try just try taking a reporter in, they lie with impunity. They made up protection concerns to give services to special needs children, they make up most of everything they do. When will some one investigate the lies in family courts.

Anonymous said...

Please see this site:

http://www.childyouthreview.ca/down/BC_Children_and_Youth_Review_Report_FINAL_April_4.pdf

It is the independent inquiry of Justice Ted Hughes into BC child protections failures which was issued on April 7, 2006 (same date as verdict in Jeffrey's case).

We need a similar public inquiry and report so that an overhaul of Ontario's mess of system is put in place.

Amanda said...

I will install the plaque probably in July or August. I may have to have the rock changed as the plaque is huge! Installation is taken care of though.

I will of course post in advance when I will be at the park so you can all make it... thanks!
Amanda

Anonymous said...

Neither "Is She Joking" nor "Well Said" deal with the fundamental problems of child-welfare. For example:

that the system is based on a series of false premises

that children are removed from families for no credible reason

that parents are assigned the role of abuser from the outset, no amount of evidence to the contrary is considered

that family courts provide no due process or require no burden of proof of any wrongdoing

that parents may be implicated on the basis of anonymous and unfounded suspicions

that the system permits social workers to use maliciousness and dishonesty to gain and keep control of children

that once children are in custody, they are subjected to physical, emotional and sexual abuse at alarming rates

In other words, the system refuses to recognize that the best place for children is with their families, creating a situation where no one's children are safe. Even if you are a "parent of the year" you can have your children removed by social workers - some with their own personal agendas, others deeply disturbed, others who are border-line illiterate - it really is that bad.

Of course, there is no accountability and no effective way for parents or children to protest the abuse they endure.

People working in this industry are blind to the fact that they - and no one else - are the problem. Their suggestions have little to no bearing on how this system should be reformed. The real solution is far closer to scrapping it, rather than moving pieces around the board.

Anonymous said...

I completely agree with the last comment regarding scraping the system. They are a highly bureaucratic organization that is publically funded. Despite being publically funded they seem to have no accountability.

I don't believe they do valuable work. I personally feel that they are trained in the social work philosophy of the day and try it out for a few years to see if it works. When it doesn't they change it somewhat. Although their members may think they are doing valuable work, us folk in the real world know that a hard days work isn't working 9 -5 with an hour for lunch.

I think the system needs to be scrapped.

Anonymous said...

After watching The Fifth Estate I am even more appauled.

One thing for sure is CCAS did a worst than horrible job. They must be held accountable.

Another thing for sure is all of those obese adults that watched Jeffrey starve to death should also be charged but that isnt likely to happen so may they all suffer one day and hopefully nobody will come to their rescue. May they rot in hell.

As for Jeffrey's parents the above applies to them also. They are poster children for INVOLUNTARY STERILIZATION!!!!!!!!!

After all if they would stop reproducing Children's Aid wouldnt be involved with their children. Their children have been scarred for life--the only hope is that the latest baby never be returned to them. They are liars and they are manipulative.

They are not fit to parent....to think that they too watched Jeffrey suffering knowing he was drinking out of the toilet etc is disgusting.
The fact they are still having regular contact with Kidman and Bottineau in jail speaks volumes. These are not parents who care about their children...

Worth noting is not a tear was shed by either one of them. This is a game to them.

They are dispicable. May they rot in hell.

Anonymous said...

To the last poster - well said, my sentiments exactly.

Anonymous said...

Scrap the system? I don't think so!

Overhaul the system? perhaps but not scrap it.

After watching the 5th estate last night it only reinforces my belief:the system as we know it does not work. If it did Jeffrey would not be dead.

Overhaul it, hand it over to a private consortium who WOULD be accountable to the ombudsman and the public.

To state all children should remain with their families is like living in disneyland. Not all parents are fit to be parents.

We saw two of them last night on the 5th estate.

For those advocating to keep children with their families Yvonne Kidman and Richard Baldwin just imploded your case.

Anonymous said...

Nobody's "joking" here.

I do not find contradiction between the facts in Ms. Ante's and Mr. Solomon's postings and this site's premise... I do find their "Jeffrey's tragic death" comments sadly distanced and shrouded in PR & marketing speak.

A million children saved will not help CCAS remove this stain. Their "I've told you that I made a mistake, you must forgive me and leave me alone" attitude, their(quote) "wagon circling" behaviour and their failure to fire the person responsible for placing Jeffrey in that hellhole are detrimental to their cause at best but are unforgivable under these circumstances.

I applaud the Fifth Estate for broadcasing the program as well as the lawsuit being launched against CCAS as well as against the spineless, dysnfunctional adults who lived in that house. That spineless dysfunction extends to all who stood by as Jeffrey slowly died, especially Jeffrey's parents.

Anonymous said...

No one is advocating keeping kids with Yvonne and Richard. However, the vast majority of kids in the system should never have been placed there.

Anonymous said...

If you indeed think all family's are anything like Jeffery's, Please.

this is how the system works it places children in care with people like this. Why do they die in care at the rate they do?
doctors nurses, social workers, teachers, lawyers, 3,000 in one city signed a petion because they too know this system does not work. And takes many children into care that don't need to be there, not even the politicians denies it, so don't be so blind and read the legislation,
Jeffery's parents should not have had children, however we also forget Jeffery and his siblings should never have either, given the abuse and now continued abuse at the hands of CCCAS and perhaps prenatal abuse.
No one is advocating that every parent, should be allowed to parent. But we would see much more justice and a great deal less child abuse if we got rid of the adults profiting off the system, and had the police investigate or a body of professionals that have no vested interested. Charge all parents in a criminal court for cases of child abuse and sever neglect where the burden of proof is necessary. It was necessary in Jeffery's case. Once every child that is apprehend also has a parent charge for the abuse in a criminal case. watch child abuse, numbers fall. People that abuse animals go to criminal court are children some how less worthy, I think not.This is what is wrong with the system,in family courts, there is no due process. And people can and will lose children needlessly.And its the children that suffer watch the Crown Wards, criminal courts, and charges for cases of child abuse, and a royal commison of inquiry

Anonymous said...

It may surprise some readers that parents accused of child abuse are almost never charged criminally, although Canadian law has more than ample provision for abuse. The reason is that almost all kids are brought into CAS custody for bogus concerns under vaguely defined terms of the Family Services Act. Almost anything can be (and is) considered abuse or neglect. Once CAS takes your kids, family courts require no burden of proof and no due process. There are no provisions to prevent social workers from lying - which they do on a regular basis. The system should be changed to restrict removal to the few cases of credible abuse and charges laid under criminal law.

Anonymous said...

Scrap the system? CAS agencies have discredited themselves to the point that not scrapping them only leaves the field to those who have proven they have no understanding of children's best interests. It has been said before, but if CAS had any sincere interest in children they would never act the way they do. An entirely different system is needed - one that leaves CAS and those who have served such agencies completely out of the picture.

Anonymous said...

Worth noting: Kidman raped one of Jeffrey's siblings several times. This came out in the trial. The children's testimony stated he did this.

Was he charged with rape? NOPE!

Often perpetrators are not charged because they do not want to further traumatize the children . The children would have to testify--particularly in abuse cases involving children. The system feels the children are removed from their abusers and that is the best they can hope for.

Furthermore abused children gravitate back to their parents when the opportunity arises. Case in point: Fred Grotta. Children will almost always defend their parents and wish to be with them in hopes that things will change.

Anonymous said...

From the London Free Press today. Letters to the Editor.

Child protection needs oversight

With respect to the letter, Tragedy mustn't overshadow vital child-care work (April 12), by Beverley J. Antle.

The death of Jeffrey Baldwin should be a catalyst for change. This is not the first time a child has been given to child abusers by a CAS agency. In the past, many in foster care were abused and many who were adopted from CAS agencies were also abused.

What happened to Jeffrey Baldwin is a travesty; his horror is unimaginable. The 53 CAS agencies of Ontario have had no independent oversight for more than 100 years.

MPP Andrea Horwath and the NDP have designed Bill 88 to give the Ontario ombudsman investigative oversight of the CAS. It is long overdue that CAS agencies were held to account to taxpayers and to those whom they serve.

Throwing more money at an agency is not a solution, but having responsible oversight is a first step. Let Jeffrey Baldwin not die in vain and, finally, let's overhaul the child protection system. Another child was killed in foster care in Welland last December as well.

Anne Patterson

London

Anonymous said...

I think yvonne Kidman and Richard Baldwin had another child.
does any one know if this is definitely true?

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