2023 QCCQ 9676, 2023 QCCQ 9676

Protection de la jeunesse — 234640 2023 QCCQ 9676 JB5047 QUEBEC COURT CANADA PROVINCE OF QUEBEC DISTRICT OF [...] TOWN OF […] « Youth division »

N o : 455-41-001110-170 DATE: July 20, 2023 ______________________________________________________________________ BY THE HONOURABLE PASCALE BERARDINO, J.C.Q. ______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SITUATION OF : X Born on […], 2014 [SOCIAL WORKER 1] , person duly authorized by the Director of Youth Protection of CIUSSS A; Applicant -and- A Child’s mother -and- B Child’s father ______________________________________________________________________ JUDGMENT [1] ______________________________________________________________________ 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 9.2, 9.3 and 135 Y.P.A.).

Introduction [ 1 ] The Director is requesting for the revision of the Court order rendered on February 25, 2021. [ 2 ] By this order, the Tribunal declared the security and development of X are still in danger for the same grounds and for two additional grounds: physical abuse and neglect on the educational level [2] . [ 3 ] As protective measures, the Court ordered that the child be entrusted to a foster family, authorized supervised contacts with his mother, upon agreement and according to the modalities set with the Director, with the possibility of lifting the supervision, authorized supervised contacts with his father, according to the modalities set by the Director, and as per the calendar of contacts that will be determined by the Director, authorized contacts with his maternal grandmother, according to the frequency and the modalities determined by the Director. [ 4 ] The Court also forbade all contacts between Mr.

C and the child, ordered that the child receive specific healthcare and health services required by his situation, ordered that the child attend a school or another place of learning, ordered and recommended various other measures including a social follow-up, the whole for a period of six months. [ 5 ] Today, the Director considers that the security and the development of the child are still in danger on the grounds of educational neglect and physical abuse.

[ 6 ] Because of the new facts alleged, the Director recommends revising the protective measures so that the Court order that the child be entrusted to a the kinship foster family of his maternal grandmother, to authorize supervised with his mother, upon agreement and according to the modalities set with the Director, to authorize the possibility of lifting the said supervision according to the evolution of the situation and under certain conditions, to prohibit any direct or indirect contact with his father and Mr.

C, to order that the child receive specific healthcare and health services including the continuation of his follow-up with CRDI and to order and recommend various other measures including a social follow-up for a period of seven months. [ 7 ] The mother is present and represented at all hearings. She agrees with the recommended measures, but she asks to add a precision concerning the possibility of supervision by a third person. [ 8 ] The father is also present and represented.

He does not contest the Director's recommendations, but proposes to resume contact with his son if he participates in three satisfactory psychosocial meetings. [ 9 ] The child’s lawyer agrees with the Director's recommendation and with the father’s demand. Evolution of the child’s situation [ 10 ] X, is a boy who is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit disorder for which he is medicated.

He has special needs and requires a high intensity supervision. [ 11 ] During the last two years, his situation has evolved, and he has experienced a change in caregivers. [ 12 ] Throughout this period, the Director’s recommendations varied according to the evolution of the child’s situation. [ 13 ] This is a

summary of the major events that occurred during this process. Revision of august 2021 [ 14 ] When the Director seized the court of her motion for revision, X was still residing in the same foster home with his brother Y who also presents with autism.

This resource was from the CRDI network. [ 15 ] X developed an attachment bond with his caregivers, towards whom he refers to have an answer to his needs. [ 16 ] Since the placement in this home, a great progress is observed in regard to his behavioral functioning, personal autonomy, and emotional management, but challenges remain. [ 17 ] Thus, the child still presents with important and intense behavioral issues and impulsivity.

He can be aggressive toward his brother and other children. [ 18 ] He receives many services form the CRDI, including a psychoeducational follow-up. [ 19 ] An evaluation for a possible attachment disorder has been realised by a psychiatrist who found that the issues related to autism were more important than those pertaining to the child’s emotional world. [ 20 ] X resumed contact with his grandmother when the COVID restrictions were raised in June 2021. [ 21 ] Y joins these contacts that started once every other weekend for 4 hours. [ 22 ] At that time, the Director was recommending prolonging the foster home placement for another period of 6 months.

Y removal from the foster home and the provisional order of November 2021 [ 23 ] At the end of September 2021, the foster home requested that both children, Y and X, be removed from their place. [ 24 ] The boys had begun to engage in sexual exploration with each other while sharing a bedroom. [ 25 ] Various strategies were suggested by professionals, but they were not feasible for the foster family to implement to minimize the possibility that the children would continue their sexual behavior. [ 26 ] In the end, the foster family was ready to keep X but demanded for Y departure. [ 27 ] The maternal grandmother expressed her interest to take care of Y.

She said she was ready to commit herself to collaborate with the services of the Youth Protection, the CRDI and school. [ 28 ] She was ready to leave her current job to be available to take care of Y and live with her spouse.

She already had the custody of her granddaughter for many years. [ 29 ] At that time, the Director was not unable to find another resource from the CRDI network that could meet the child’s needs. [ 30 ] The mother was agreeing for Y to be entrusted to the maternal grandmother’s if both boys were eventually reunited. [ 31 ] On November 9, 2021, after hearing the evidence, the Court entrusted Y to his maternal grandmother on a provisional order while the Director was still looking for an appropriate resource and authorized the integration in such resource when the situation allowed.

Hearing of February 25, 2022 [ 32 ] Under the care of his foster parents, X continued to improve his language and conceptual skills significantly. [ 33 ] On January 28, 2022, the speech therapist from the CRDI presented her report and recommendations to the mother, the maternal grandmother, and foster mother. [ 34 ] The foster mother showed that she was able to understand X and help him continue to develop. [ 35 ] The Director recommended that X remain in her care until October 1 st , 2022. [ 36 ] The mother was requesting that X be progressively reintegrated into her care and requested larger access to the child, minimally to keep the current frequency and modality which is every Tuesday at the Director’s office with Y and X and every other Saturday at the maternal grandmother’s home. [ 37 ] As for Y, the Director observed that the maternal grandmother was able to answer Y’s needs, and that the child was doing well in her care and recommended that he remained in her care. [ 38 ] The mother was also in agreement that Y should remain in the foster home of his maternal grandmother, who was to be evaluated as a proximity foster home. [ 39 ] For lack of time, the hearing had to be continued to a later date and the court maintained X. in his foster home and Y in the care of his maternal grandmother.

Hearing of September 28, 2022 [ 40 ] X continued to thrive in his foster home. His language skills now allowed him to express his emotions and to develop his social skills. [ 41 ] He is also able to attend school for more days and hours. [ 42 ] On the other hand, his behavior at school became more difficult to manage by demonstrating more opposition and he could resist to comply for longer periods of time. [ 43 ] The CRDI increased the services to help the child with his behavior. [ 44 ] Further recommendations were made to help him communicate.

The mother was taught strategies to use when interacting with her son. An additional session with the speech therapist was necessary as the mother had difficulty consistently applying these strategies. [ 45 ] During the summer of 2022, his behavior in his foster home also became more difficult. He was more emotional, could lie and attempt to manipulate the situation to take advantage of other children who were more vulnerable. [ 46 ] X often reacted after contacts with his mother. He was more sensitive and could yell on occasion or react by expressing heighten anger.

His reaction were more intense for about 30 minutes. [ 47 ] The Director was now recommending placement until X’s age of majority which the mother contested. [ 48 ] Meanwhile, Y was still doing good at the maternal grandmother’s home. [ 49 ] She provided with a very structured routine and ensured that the boy took his medication according to his physician’s orders. [ 50 ] Nonetheless, two reports have been made regarding inadequate parenting abilities by the foster parents. [ 51 ] They were transparent about what occurred and undertook to improve their parenting skills.

Being open to suggestions and to receive additional support from the delegate and specialized support from the CRDI. [ 52 ] The collaboration of the grandmother and her husband has continued, and they are committed to taking care of Y until he reaches the age of majority. [ 53 ] The foster family of Ms.

D was accredited on July 26, 2022. [ 54 ] Before adjourning for yet another continuance for the pleadings, the Court maintained X in his foster home and Y with his grandmother and ordered that contact with the mother continue at the same frequency, but that they be individual and children together in alternance from one week to the other during the weekly visits, the Saturday remaining the same.

Hearing of April 21 st , 2023 [ 55 ] In that day, the Director presented with a motion to reopen the evidence in X’s case because of important new facts. [ 56 ] X’s behavior continued to be problematic both at school and in his foster home with a variation in the degrees of intensity. [ 57 ] Then, in February 2023, sexualized behavior with other children in the foster home began to reoccur. [ 58 ] The foster parents then requested that X be moved to another foster home, for which the CRDI started searching.

[ 59 ] The mother then advocated for X to be entrusted to the maternal grandmother. She presented with a motion for a provisional order to this effect. [ 60 ] The Director explored this idea but had reservations. First, the grandmother was not back from work when X would be home from school. Second, the grandmother’s and her spouse’s parenting skills were still being worked on, and X presented with difficult behavior.

Third, it could jeopardize Y’s life project. [ 61 ] Meanwhile, Y’s situation remained generally stable. [ 62 ] On April 21 st , the court entrusted X provisionally to the maternal grandmother since she was ale to demonstrate that she knew her grandson’s needs very well and how to deal with them, which she did during his regular visits to her home. This also allowed the two brothers to be together. Hearing of July 20 th , 2023 [ 63 ] On this date, the Director recommended that X remain entrusted to the kinship foster homer of his grandmother. [ 64 ] The services of the CRDI were requested to be transferred.

In the meantime, as of May 2023, the services of a psychoeducator were offered to support the maternal grandmother. [ 65 ] The later offered a good collaboration and understanding of the implementation of prevention and intervention tools for X’s behavior. [ 66 ] X is adapting well to his new foster home, where he lives with Y and his 12 year old cousin under the care of their maternal grandmother and her spouse. [ 67 ] During all five psychosocial meetings with the child that occurred between April and July, the child is seen smiling, playing outdoors both with and without neighboring children. [ 68 ] The foster parents reported that X listens well and follows his routine. [ 69 ] There were no reports of inappropriate sexual behaviors manifested by the child at school or in the foster home. [ 70 ] Ms.

D mentions that she finds great happiness in taking care of X and her other two grandchildren.

She and her husband are fully committed to take care of X long term. [ 71 ] For the grandmother, the main concerning behavior is the fact that X teases Y a lot. [ 72 ] However, on June 15, 2023, a report was made about Y regarding inadequate educational methods committed by the maternal grandmother. [ 73 ] The grandmother was ashamed of this situation, so she did not bring it to the Director’s attention right away. [ 74 ] At the hearing, the grandmother was very emotional when she explained the situation in which Y was accused by a neighbor of not protecting her child from another while playing, and when Y reacted by calling this person a bad name, the grandmother slapped him. [ 75 ] She admitted her mistake to Y immediately, apologized, vowed to him and the delegate to never to commit such

an act and promised to identify the stressor’s that led her to this situation. [ 76 ] In July, the DYP determined that the report was not retained. [ 77 ] The transparency of the maternal grandmother and undertaking not to repeat such an impulsive gesture were considered. [ 78 ] Another element that caused stress for the grandmother was that the mother had requested her help since she has separated from Mr. C, which increased her responsibilities and made her more impatient.

Evolution of the mother’s situation [ 79 ] Since the last court order, the mother has continued to struggle financially and was evicted in July 2021 for unpaid rent.

She went to live with her spouse outside of the region where her children live. [ 80 ] In September 2021, the mother gave birth to her fourth child, Z. [ 81 ] Shortly after, she moved with her newborn to live under the supervision of her maternal grandmother to whom the child was entrusted. [ 82 ] Because of their conflictual relationship, the mother and the baby moved to the maternal aunt’s home before going to [organism A], where the mother agreed to be assessed for her parental skills. [ 83 ] The interveners at the [organism A] terminated her stay because the issues that she was struggling with were the same as those she had exhibited in 2020 when she stayed at this resource with her son E. [ 84 ] On December 13, 2021, the mother moved back to live with Mr.

C, and Z was placed in foster care.

[ 85 ] She continues to participate and collaborate in the social follow-up. She has been asking for more contact with her children regularly. [ 86 ] However, she still denies the physical abuse by Mr. C and affirms that the children lied. [ 87 ] On July 20, 2021, Mr. C was declared guilty of assault towards Y. He was sentenced to 2 years probation and 100 hours of community service. [ 88 ] Despite his condemnation, Mr. C maintains that he only raised his voice and that the children accidentally hurt themselves. [ 89 ] The mother still has difficulty taking her place.

When the grandmother is present at the meetings, the mother lets her speak. [ 90 ] With her spouse, she lets Mr.

C take the lead during meetings and contacts with her younger children. [ 91 ] She participated in a follow-up of La Maison A to address the issues around conjugal violence. [ 92 ] In March 2021, her worker from this organism mentioned that the mother was working on identifying her emotions, particularly her anger, and that the couple was not dysfunctional. [ 93 ] She said that the mother may also be able to recognize that her spouse has an impulsive aggressivity but has not otherwise addressed it. [ 94 ] The mother mentions that Mr.

C is managing his anger problem by attending meetings at [Organism C]. [ 95 ] Despite these follow-ups, the delegate still observed verbal and psychological violence, control and impatience on the part of Mr. C towards the mother. [ 96 ] In July 2022, the couple moved back to live in the [A region] area. [ 97 ] In July 2023, the court learns that the mother has separated from Mr. C. She now recognizes the conjugal violence and realizes that this man has cost her the loss of her children.

Visits and contacts between the mother and Y and his siblings [ 98 ] Since the last court order, X had supervised contact with his mother every Thursday for 1.5 hours with Y. On every other week, E would join the boys. [ 99 ] At first the contacts were occurring at the mother’s home, but since July 1 st , 2021, because the mother moved out of the region and to avoid too much transport for the children, these contacts take place at the Directors’ office. [ 100 ] During the visits and contacts with her son, some progress has been observed.

In the beginning, the mother was often on her phone and the children watching television. [ 101 ] The children’s behavior was more difficult after these contacts for more than two days. [ 102 ] The mother than started to have a regular routine that encompassed activities, snacks, and rest to which the children have responded well. [ 103 ] Since May 2021, the mother has started to impose more requirements to Y in order to apply the CRDI’s recommendations but still struggled in this. [ 104 ] In the fall of 2021, the mother was authorized to join the maternal grandmother’s contacts at her home with X and Y.

They occur every other Saturday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. [ 105 ] By September 2022, it was observed that the mother was able to make her children feel safe and secure as she welcomes them and during their departure. Her emotional response to them had improved. [ 106 ] However, some difficulties remained.

She still has difficulty structuring visits, with her organization, setting limits, her delayed responses, maintaining her skills acquisition, and her difficulty integrating recommendations from the CRDI. [ 107 ] It also observed that there is sibling rivalry between Y and X, the first taking advantage of the second which requires a higher level of supervision.

The mother responds by minimizing the conflict but remaining appropriate. [ 108 ] This is more problematic during the weekly visits because they are held in the Director’s office compared to when they are held at the grandmother’s home where the boys have more space to evolve. [ 109 ] She has started taking medication for her ADHD, which the mother says it helps her especially during the contacts with the children.

Indeed, it has helped her to improve the structure of the contacts as well as her focused on developing a stable and supportive routine. [ 110 ] Nonetheless, still today, the mother has difficulty preventing and responding to problem behaviors. This is mostly related to her difficulty in integrating the recommendations of the CRDI. Evolution of the father and contacts with the child

[ 111 ] Since the last judgment, it has been difficult for the delegate to communicate with the father, who has not heard from him since May 2021. [ 112 ] The father had no phone, no e-mail address, and no car. Messages for him had to transit through the mother or his girlfriend. [ 113 ] He recognizes being depressive and having an antisocial personality. [ 114 ] The resumption of telephone contact between the child and his father was difficult.

It began once a week, but the father did not respect the Director’s instructions to refrain from making comments that could put the child into a conflict of loyalties. [ 115 ] It was observed an important increase in behavioral problems in the child during the telephone contacts with his father that occurred when the child also had contact with his mother. [ 116 ] To separate the two, the Director suggested to change the modalities of the contacts, but the father refused every proposition that was presented. [ 117 ] The last phone call between the child and his father took place on April 8, 2021. [ 118 ] On July 20 th , 2023, the father informs the court that he has ceased to consume marijuana for three months because he was reacting negatively. [ 119 ] He also states that he has had a new girlfriend for more than three months. [ 120 ] He shows that he has recently contacted the delegate to request contact with his son and express his intention to collaborate with the social follow-up. analysis [ 121 ] X’s has changed during the last two years.

He now presents with important behavioral disturbances and requires special intervention strategies adapted to his special needs. [ 122 ] The court has been convinced that the maternal grandmother is able to provide with this adapted care and believes in her commitment to care for her grandchildren. [ 123 ] But the challenges are great, and time will tell if she is able to maintain her capacity in the long run. [ 124 ] She and her spouse need to continue working on their parental skills. [ 125 ] This being said, the event of June remains isolated and very circumstantial. [ 126 ] The Court believes in the sincerity of her emotion when she recounts this event and how sorry she felt about her act. [ 127 ] Also, it occurred in a context where the mother just got separated, and was asking a lot of her own mother. [ 128 ] This highlighted the fact that the grandmother must make sure that her grandchildren are her priority and that she must focus her energy on them. [ 129 ] The mother also must understand this and make the job easier for the grandmother if she wants her children to stay in her care.

So, everybody must pitch in and make the effort for this placement to be a success. [ 130 ] In terms of contact with the mother, the court will take act of the current minimum of frequency which should be maintained. [ 131 ] The fact that the mother is separated from Mr. C should encourage the Director to review the level of supervision of her contact, but also taking into account, that the mother has issues in terms of supervision of her children and how she deals with the children’s behavior. [ 132 ] As for the father, he is alleging that he is now sober.

This needs to be proven and to continue in time. [ 133 ] Also, ne must who collaborate with the Director. From his testimony, it is clear that we are not there yet, since he mentions that he records all meetings with the delegate. [ 134 ] The contacts should still be suspended during this current order which will also allow the father to get an appointment with the CRDI to get better information about his son’s condition. [ 135 ] This way, if and when contacts resume, he will have the tools to be able to respond appropriately to the behavior his son may present. [ 136 ] Lastly, although Mr.

C requested contacts with X., the court finds it is not in the child’s best interest because of his lack of full recognition of the physical abuse, the special needs of the child and the fact that he is not requesting for contacts with him. [ 137 ] Having read the reports and heard the testimonies, the Court finds that the evolution of the situation gives way to the recommended measures. FOR ALL THESE MOTIVES THE COURT:

GRANTS the present application; DECLARES that the security and development of the X still in danger on the grounds of educational neglect and physical abuse; REVISES the Court order rendered on February 25, 2021; ORDERS that the child be entrusted to his kinship foster family (D); AUTHORIZES in the child’s favor, supervised contacts with his mother the supervision can be done by a third party designed by the Director of Youth Protection upon agreement between the mother and the Director and according to the modalities set with the Director of Youth Protection; TAKES NOTICE that actual contacts happen once every two weeks during weekends: one Saturday every two weeks for a duration of 6 hours and one contact during a day of the week, every week, for a duration of 1 hour and half at the office of the Director; AUTHORIZES the possibility of lifting the supervision according to the evolution of the situation and under the following conditions: - when the mother will have recognised the physical abused by the spouse Mr.

C; - when the mother will have undertaken services to recognise violence and tis consequences on family members. PROHIBITS any direct or indirect contact between the child and his father; PROHIBITS any direct or indirect contact between the child and Mr.

C; ORDERS that the child receives specific healthcare and health services including the continuation of his follow-up with CRDI; RECOMMENDS that the mother continues her personal follow-up regarding the attention deficit with hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); RECOMMENDS that the child X. attends school regularly; ORDERS that the parents report periodically to the Director on the measures they apply in their own regard or in their child’s regard to put an end to the situation in which the security or development of the child is in danger; TAKES JUDICIAL NOTICE of the Director of Youth Protection’s intention to clarify X life plan in the light of the next measure; ORDERS that a person working for an establishment or body, provide aid, counsel and assistance to the child and his mother and his father if he requests it, for a period of seven (7) months; ENTRUSTS the situation of the child X to the Director of Youth Protection to see that the measures are carried out. __________________________________ PASCALE BERARDINO, J.C.Q.

M e Christine Loubier Counsel for the DYP M e Audrey Roch-Genest Counsel for the child X M e Mireille Leblanc Counsel for the mother M e Erica Gosselin Counsel for the father Deposited exhibits: D-25, P-1 Date of hearing: July 20, 2023