'Beyond belief' Quebec judge blasts youth protection over treatment of northern teen
CBC
WARNING: This story contains details of sexual abuse.
Quebec's youth protection services are under fire for failing to ensure the safety of a teenage boy from the province's north who was believed to be a target of gangs and child sex trafficking.
Allegations of sexual abuse and threats against the 16-year-old's life came during his time in rehabilitation centres down south, which he repeatedly ran away from.
In a May 9 decision, Quebec Court Judge Peggy Warolin said the provincial youth protection department failed to intervene when those claims first arose, and kept the youth in rehabilitation centres for too long, when there was little to no proof that being at the centre was helping him.
"Can we imagine worse than a teenager who repeatedly runs away from an intensive supervision unit only to find himself the victim of a prostitution and drug trafficking network?" she wrote in French.
The teen, who can't be identified due to youth protection laws, had repeatedly said he wanted to return to live in his community and develop his ties with his parents and siblings.
The judge ruled the teen's rights under the Youth Protection Act, and the Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families, were harmed by the province's child and youth protection centre.
The teenager was taken from his parents, who are separated, in northern Quebec when he was two years old.
After that, he was bounced around between different foster families – and at one point with his grandparents. But most of those stays were short-lived.
The child showed aggression, suicidal ideation and has struggled with substance use. On many occasions, he refused to take his ADHD medication, the decision said.
He began his numerous stints at rehabilitation centres starting in April 2017.
In January, a child psychiatrist concluded the living environment of a rehabilitation centre wasn't working for the teen, and would be safer closer to his home community.
On being with his family though, the department was hesitant, due to the level of close monitoring needed and given the youth's inclination to run away.
Warolin blasted youth protection services for not having the courage to "deviate from reference manuals" and follow the opinion of professionals.
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