B.C. Ministry of Children in question again after mother raises alarm over daughter's suicide
A woman in Burnaby, B.C., is calling for the Ministry of Children and Family Development to review her daughter's case following her suicide a day after she was no longer in care.
"The last four years have been a rollercoaster," said Lisa Fraser.
B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan said Fraser's story is another example of the ministry's negligence, following the death of Alex Gervais, who was 18 and in provincial care when he fell or jumped from the window of the hotel he was living in, alone.
Fraser said she voluntarily put her daughter Carly in the ministry's care when she was 15 and was struggling with mental health and drug issues. Fraser, a single mother with mental health issues herself, said was no longer able to cope.
"I was trying to get her help," said Fraser, who added that up until then, social workers had only offered family counseling, which Carly had refused.
Fraser said she and her daughter were happy with the care she received at the home where she was placed.
"The first year, I thought she was doing great," she said.
'Ran out of time'
But Fraser said a year later, when her daughter was 16, Carly's social worker told her she would be placed in a basement suite, alone.
"She just said Carly ran out of time," said Fraser. "She'd never been by herself."
Fraser said from then on, Carly's life spun out of control. She said her daughter was sexually assaulted twice in as many months. She attempted suicide several times, quit school and her part-time job.
The NDP said Carly then bounced around between another group home and living with friends.
Fraser added that her daughter's social worker suggested Carly go to a treatment centre for a psychiatric evaluation, but that never happened. She said social workers didn't respond to her questions and calls to help her daughter.
In 2014, a day after she turned 19 and was no longer in care, Carly took her life.
Mom wants answers
"I want answers to how the decisions were made, who made them, why they were made, and why they wouldn't listen to anything I said," said Fraser.
The province said it will not launch a review because Carly died a day after she was officially out of their care.
"It's not true that they age out with no supports," said Minister of Children and Family Development Stephanie Cadieux.
"There is actually a lot of support available as they make that transition. But we do know that there's always more we could be doing."
