2018 QCCQ 12514, 2018 QCCQ 12514

Protection de la jeunesse — 182905 2018 QCCQ 12514 COURT OF QUEBEC CANADA PROVINCE OF QUEBEC DISTRICT OF [...] TOWN OF [...] Youth Division No: 610-41-000667-154 DATE: March 21, 2018 ______________________________________________________________________ BY THE HONOURABLE MARIE-CLAUDE BÉLANGER, J.C.Q. ______________________________________________________________________ MRS [SOCIAL WORKER 1], exercising her profession at the Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux A, having a place of business at […] Applicant -and- X, presently residing at […] Adolescent -and- MRS A, domiciled and residing at […] Mother -and- MR B, domiciled and residing at […] Father ______________________________________________________________________ JUDGMENT (Sec. 95 (1 and 2) and 75 Y.P.A.) ______________________________________________________________________ WARNING: The Youth Protection Act forbids the publishing or broadcasting of information allowing for a child or the child’s parents to be identified.

Any person who contravenes this provision commits an offence and is liable to a fine (sections 11.2, 11.2.1 and 135 Y.P.A.). [ 1 ] The Director of Youth Protection asks the Court to review and extend a decision rendered on May 1 st , 2017, entrusting the adolescent to the proximity foster home of his uncle C until the end of March 2018, with a progressive reintegration with his mother. [ 2 ] The Director now recommends that the Court entrust the youth to that family until he reaches the age of majority, combined with various assistance measures to support him and his family. [ 3 ] The mother, acknowledging her son’s important accomplishments in the foster family’s care, agrees with the recommendation.

The father agrees that his son stay with the foster family for now, but does not agree that it be ordered until X reaches his majority. He suggests a shorter period so that he can solidify his relationship with his son and be considered for his care, eventually. [ 4 ] X confirms that he enjoys living with his aunt and uncle. The present situation allows him contacts with both his parents and this arrangement satisfies him.

He wishes that it be maintained but wants an open door, should the situation evolve, for there to be modifications. [ 5 ] The only issue contested before the Court is the duration of the foster care order: will it be ordered until X reaches the age of majority or for a shorter period of time? [ 6 ] X has mainly been in the care of his mother. They developed an unhealthy attachment, which was affecting the youth’s development and autonomy. It hindered his school attendance and he was insecure with his peers.

He felt as if he needed his mother at every moment and was unable to function without her. [ 7 ] The mother did not provide structure and discipline to X. She was struggling to implement a healthy routine for her son, which amounted to important behavioural problems: he was disruptive in the family home, did not respect rules and boundaries, refused to go to bed, would play video games all through the night, he was hearing voices and claiming he was under the influence of demons. He would refuse to go to school, and would often miss days at a time.

The mother was not taking control of her son’s actions nor imposing clear and firm consequences.

[ 8 ] At the October 2015 hearing, the mother was exhausted with her son’s behaviour: he did not respect her authority and she did not have any control over him. The father was overwhelmed by his own situation and did not provide much support to the mother. The youth was entrusted to a rehabilitation center for 10 months. [ 9 ] In August 2016, X returned home with his mother. He felt more confident and indicated that he could now follow the house rules and routine. He was sleeping much better at the Center and all the voices he heard before had disappeared. But old habits returned quickly.

In December, he started missing school again and his grades dropped significantly. Although the mother wanted the situation to change, she did not have the capabilities to uphold discipline in a way that ensured that X’s progress would last in a long-term setting. [ 10 ] In April 2017, X was entrusted to his uncle Mr C and his aunt D. Since then, he has not missed a day of school and is now enjoying high school. He went from having failing grades to obtaining high marks and being placed on the honor roll. He is more confident and his relationships with peers are better.

He was able to establish friendships in his community and in school. He has been shown what a proper routine is by being imposed curfews, going to bed at a decent hour, not having his cell phone in his room at night, and completing homework in a timely matter. [ 11 ] His relationship with his mother is no longer prohibiting him from functioning without her. He can spend the night at a friend’s house without calling her in the middle of the night to pick him up. He no longer needs her to be at his side as he developed a sense of autonomy. They enjoy each other’s company and are always happy to be together.

The problematic of separation anxiety has been controlled. [ 12 ] The C-D family truly made a positive impact in his life. [ 13 ] Since he was entrusted the foster family, X has benefited from weekend sleepovers at his mother’s house regularly. The contacts with his fathers were sparse at the beginning, but have increased recently. [ 14 ] For the last month, the contacts between the adolescent and his father were scheduled from Friday after school to Saturday afternoon, every two weekends in accordance with the father’s work sequence. From there, he transfers to his mother’s house, until the Monday morning.

He spends one night at his father’s place and two nights at his mother’s place. X is quite content with this schedule. [ 15 ] The mother has been dealing with her anxiety and confidence issues by meeting a Mental Health Worker. They met up until November 2017, when the professional expressed that they no longer needed to work together since the mother has been dealing with her anxieties very well. [ 16 ] She wants to grow stronger and is very open to the interventions of the Director. She acknowledges her difficulties in imposing structure and a healthy routine to her son.

She sees how well he is doing, and all the improvements he made under the care of his aunt and uncle. During X’s visits, she tries to implement the same routine as the one he has in the foster family. They are doing better than they used to, she says. But X sometimes comes back from his mom’s tired from playing video games late at night. [ 17 ] She wants him to excel and do well, and she feels that her brother’s household is offering him that possibility. [ 18 ] Over the years, the father always maintained minimum contacts with his son, but was never really implicated in his daily life.

He dealt with his own personal difficulties and health issues (addiction problem, depressive and anxious symptoms) and was not available for him. Although he has been working for the same company in Town A for the last 18 years, his personal relationships led him to live far from the youth’s residence for a while, which complicated the visits and the possibility of having him overnight during weekends. He offered little collaboration with the Director’s workers. [ 19 ] He moved back to Town A in December 2016.

At the time, his girlfriend was still living in Town B, which led him to travel a lot between Town A and Town B. His father passed away in March last year which was a difficult time for him. [ 20 ] He is now living in Town A with his girlfriend of three years and her two children. She is a stay at home mom. He has a stable environment to offer X. He still struggles with anxiety issues and needs medication to help him sleep. He meets with his doctor every three months but is no longer seeing a psychiatrist. [ 21 ] The father acknowledges that he did not live up to his parental responsibilities in the past years.

He recently has been meeting with the worker to

schedule visits with his son, which are more frequent and regular since the end of January 2018. X and him seem to have developed a positive relationship. He wants to be present for his son and be a part of his life. His first priority concerning X is that he succeeds and has a stable life. [ 22 ] He wishes to be considered as an option to take care of X for the future. He mentions that if he is not the better option for him, he would agree to let him stay with the foster family, but he wishes to be given the opportunity to step up and take his responsibilities as the youth’s father.

ANALYSIS [ 23 ] The evidence clearly shows that X is doing very well with the foster family. In less than a year, he settled in a routine that he always rejected before. That healthy lifestyle brought him to attend school regularly, like he should, and his grades improved significantly. He has the potential to be very successful in school, but needs to continue to be consistent in his efforts and attendance. [ 24 ] The separation with his mother allowed him to develop his personal security and become more autonomous.

He is making friends and enjoying life outside his household. [ 25 ] The important goal for the time being is to consolidate the recent gains and avoid instability. X needs to stay in the secure, structured environment offered by the foster family. His overall psychological and physical development is much better since he is under the care of the C-D family.

[ 26 ] For now, it is too early to make a decision for the next 4 years. X has been living with his aunt and uncle for only 10 months. He has made tremendous progress but these improvements are still recent. We need to see how the situation stabilizes before taking a long-term decision. [ 27 ] The father also recently made the decision to implicate himself in his son’s life. Although recent, his presence was consistent in the last month.

A shorter order will offer the newly developing relationship between father and son time to evolve. [ 28 ] The Court will entrust him to the C-D foster family for a period of 10 months. This term is long enough to insure stability, to consolidate the improvements and continue to work with the youth and his family. X seems to have found a sounder balance in his life, we now need to make sure he maintains it.

FOR THE REASONS, THE COURT: [ 29 ] GRANTS the motion; [ 30 ] MAINTAINS that the security and development of the adolescent X are still in danger; [ 31 ] ORDERS that X be entrusted to the foster family of Mr C for a period of 10 months; [ 32 ] ORDERS that the contacts between the adolescent and his parent be determined as for the frequency, terms and modalities by the Director of Youth Protection, according to his best interest; [ 33 ] ORDERS that both parents actively participate in the application of the measures; [ 34 ] ORDERS that aid, counselling and assistance be provided to X and his family for a period of 10 months; [ 35 ] ORDERS that X receives all services required by his situation; [ 36 ] ORDERS that X attends school or any learning program assiduously in accordance with the Education Act; [ 37 ] ORDERS that the mother continues her follow-up for her mental health by a professional of her choice as long as deemed necessary by the professional; [ 38 ] ORDERS that the father collaborate to a mental health assessment for grief or any other difficulties, and follow the professional recommendations as to a follow up as long as deemed necessary; [ 39 ] STRONGLY RECOMMENDS the parents to accept the exchange of information regarding attendance and the evolution of the situation with the different professional implicated in their life; [ 40 ] ORDERS that the police collaborate to the execution of this order if necessary; [ 41 ] ENTRUSTS the situation of the adolescent to the Director of Youth Protection who shall see that the measures are carried out. __________________________________ MARIE-CLAUDE BÉLANGER, J.C.Q.

M e Amélie Dion Cain Lamarre, s.e.n.c.r.l. Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux Lawyer for the D.Y.P. M e Daniel Ouellette Legal Aid Lawyer for the adolescent M e Catherine Dionne-Marcotte André Levasseur, Avocat Lawyer for the father Date of hearing: March 12, 2018