MontrealSpecial Report

Batshaw exposed children to woman convicted of human trafficking

CBC Montreal Investigates has learned Batshaw Youth and Family Centres temporarily placed siblings with their father, who was associated with a woman convicted of human trafficking.

Youth protection agency says emergency forced workers to place children hastily in home with links to ex-con

Raffy Boudjikanian CBC News Posted: Nov 17, 2014 6:00 AM EST | Last Updated: November 17, 2014

A Quebec youth court judge heard testimony from a Batshaw childcare worker that two children had been at their father's home for three days before background checks on his acquaintances were completed. (CBC)

CBC Montreal Investigates has learned Batshaw Youth and Family Centres temporarilyplaced two Quebec children in a home associated with a person convicted of humantrafficking.

The youth protection agency serving English Montreal removed the two children in question from the home oftheir mother aftera complaint about her current partnerand lodged them with their father. It then found out he had ties to theformer convict.

Quebec law prohibits CBC from identifying anyone linked to youth protection court cases.

However, CBC News can tell you the person in question pleaded guilty to human trafficking in the Outaouais region a few years ago. The case involved a situation in whichmultiple teenagers were chained in a basement and forced into prostitution.

The woman is out on parole after serving part of her sentence.

Background check done after placement

In court testimony,CBC News heard a childcare worker atBatshaw explain that thechildren were removed from their mother's home on the evening of Monday, Nov. 3.

The worker also told the court last week that themother has admitted her current partner has struck one of the two children at least twice.

The youth protection agencysaid it ordered a criminal background check on people associated with the childrens new environment shortly after they were placed with the father.

Batshaw's worker said the check was done as quickly as possible after their placement.

The worker said the childrens father was contacted immediately after that check was done andtold the ex-convict hadto stop being around the children, or the childrenwould not be allowed to stay at his home.

However, the workeralso told the court that this conversation only happenedon Friday, Nov.7four days after the children were placed with their father.

The worker testified that the agencycontacted the former convicts parole officer who assured itthe former convictwas no longer anywhere near the children by the weekend.

Background checks conducted as necessary:Batshaw

Batshaw would not comment on this specific case, citing the Youth Protection Act.

The only person we can move or remove is the child himself,- Madeleine Brard, Director for youth protection, Batshaw

It did say emergency situations may require its workersto take children away from one parent and place them with the other without conducting background checks beforehand.

Madeleine Brard, the agency's director for youth protection, also said background checks are not a given.

Madeleine Brard, head of Batshaw Youth and Family Centres, said Batshaw does not have the power to force a person with a criminal record to stop visiting a home where children have been placed. (Radio-Canada)

Brard saidBatshaw may choose to conduct such checksif it has any reason to believe the children may be in an unsafe environment.

Once checks are done, and Batshaw finds out someone in the childrens surroundings has a criminal record, it then assesses whether that record may endangerthe children before it acts.

"If you have a person who has a past record for shoplifting, will it impact on the safety of the child?" askedBrard. "It has to do with your capacity to keep a child safe."

If it decides the criminal record indeed could spell trouble for the children, Batshaw does not have the power to force the person with a record to stop visiting the place, Brard said.

"The only person we can move or remove is the child himself,"Brard said.

She said the agencymay ask the parent of the children to demand the person with a criminal record stop showing up. Its only recourse is tothreaten to remove the children.

Brard also said Batshaw may drop in at the home for "unannounced visits" to ensure the parent is complying with such a request. Inspectors would then be looking for any tell-tale signs of the persons presence.

"The parent tells us that the person has left the home, but they still have their clothes lying around," she said, as an example.

In this case, Batshaw has now placed the children in a foster home as a temporary measure, away from either of the two parents.

A judge has asked youth protection authoritiesto decide how often each parent may visit the children. The judge has also ordered both the mothers partner and the womanconvicted of human trafficking to stop seeing the children.