Alarm bells are being sounded again about the state of Manitoba’s child-welfare system following the high-profile deaths of four children in the last year.
The latest death — Xavia Butler, whose partial remains were found in an Interlake barn in June — came to light last week, raising questions about CFS involvement in the child’s care. Natalie Anderson, the child’s former caregiver, told the Free Press the toddler was raised in an informal kinship placement until CFS placed her with her biological mother.
Jamie Pfau, the president of the Manitoba Foster Parent Association, is calling on the provincial government to make good on its election promise to ensure that every child in the province lives to see their 18th birthday.
Xavia Skye Lynn Butler (Supplied)
“What is being done to ensure this happens?” Pfau asked.
It’s a “heartbreaking” situation that’s happened before in Manitoba, with the death of Phoenix Sinclair in 2005, she said. An inquiry into Phoenix’s death produced 62 recommendations, including a call for more funding and education and training of child-welfare workers, Pfau said.
Manitoba remains one of the only jurisdictions in the world that does not require a social-work degree to work on the front lines of child welfare, she said.
“The maddening reality is none of these areas of recommendations have been adequately addressed (and) the tragedies continue,” Pfau said. “Within one year, we have watched the horrifying reality unfold: four children who were involved with CFS have died.”
Myah-Lee Gratton, 17, asked to be moved from her CFS placement in a Carman home because it was unsafe, her mother has told the Free Press. Shortly after, the teen was slain in the home, allegedly by Ryan Manoakeesick, with whom she lived.
Juliette Hastings filed a lawsuit last month, alleging her daughter’s death was a result of gross negligence and inaction by Child and Family Services. She accused CFS of ignoring “obvious” warning signs and failing to act on pleas to remove her daughter from the home. Manoakeesick is charged with five counts of first-degree murder in relation to killing the teen, his common-law wife and their three children, on Feb. 11, 2024.
In the third case, a 17-year-old boy was arrested for the fatal stabbing of a 14-year-old girl near the Graham Avenue bus mall downtown, close to the police headquarters, just after the lunch hour on Dec. 15, 2023.
The girl was transitioning out of youth detention and had no safe or appropriate housing option. She was sent to an emergency placement without proper supervision and was slain one day after her release from the detention facility, Pfau said.
In addition, Johnson Redhead’s death in Shamattawa, in September, was also a direct result of a lack of capacity to meet his needs, she said. The six-year-old boy was non-verbal and had been diagnosed with autism.
“Despite his high needs, he managed to wander away from his (school) breakfast program, as there were not enough staff to supervise him. Later that week, he was found dead from exposure,” Pfau said.
“These deaths most certainly would have been prevented if the recommendations published over a decade ago were addressed,” she said. “How can we as Manitobans not be outraged?”
A spokesperson for the Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth confirmed Tuesday the office is reviewing the deaths of Johnson, Myah-Lee and the unnamed 14-year-old girl. The advocate wasn’t formally notified by the chief medical examiner about Xavia’s death until Monday, and is determining whether it falls within its scope, she said.
The advocate may review a death if the young person or their family had received any reviewable service — child welfare, youth addiction, youth mental health, or youth justice — within 12 months of their death.
“We review all cases through a children’s rights lens to determine if the services provided adequately met the needs of each child,” the spokesperson said.
“The maddening reality is none of these areas of recommendations have been adequately addressed.” –
The advocate could not provide more detailed information about any of the cases, due to confidentiality reasons, and because of ongoing and potential court cases where doing so could affect the legal process, she said.
Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine said late Monday she feels “a personal responsibility to ensure that we are doing everything that we can to protect children and youth.”
“I take each and every one of these horrific, horrific situations very, very seriously,” she said in an interview.
Fontaine confirmed the province is investigating Xavia’s death.
“We’re using every single tool that is available to me to find out what went wrong, which includes working closely with the RCMP in their ongoing criminal investigation,” Fontaine said. “We’re in contact with our CFS system partners to better understand the services provided,” the minister said.
The families assistant deputy minister met Monday with the CEO of the Southern First Nations Network of Care, and the minister said she will also meet with the CEO later this week.
Fontaine said her team met late into the evening Friday and all day Monday to discuss the child’s tragic outcome.
“We are taking every single action that’s available to us right now.”
Interim Tory leader Wayne Ewasko called Xavia’s death “a heartbreaking tragedy.”
“The circumstances require a (full) and transparent investigation, not only to understand what happened, but, more importantly, what needs to be done to prevent similar tragedies from happening in the future,” Ewasko said in an email.
carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
Carol Sanders
Legislature reporter
Carol Sanders is a reporter at the Free Press legislature bureau. The former general assignment reporter and copy editor joined the paper in 1997. Read more about Carol.
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