11°c Overcast
18°c Light rain
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Ex-social worker 'very busy person'
Took almost three months to make first visit
Phoenix Sinclair died in 2005. (THE CANADIAN PRESS HANDOUT)
Related Items
A revolving door of social workers and supervisors had the file on Phoenix Sinclair before she was a year old. Most of them testifying at the inquiry into the death of the little girl in care can't recall the case from 12 years ago -- especially one social worker, who testified Tuesday she was juggling full-time university classes while working full time for Winnipeg Child and Family Services and commuting daily into the city from Brokenhead First Nation.
"I was a very busy person," Delores Chief-Abigosis said.
The provincial inquiry is trying to find out if and how the child welfare system failed Phoenix, who died in 2005 at the hands of her mother, Samantha Kematch and her boyfriend, Karl McKay. Chief-Abigosis hasn't been able to recall details of the case and can't say why there's no record of her having done work on the file from mid-November 2000, when she started working for CFS, and February 2001.
The former social worker at Brokenhead First Nation testified Monday her caseload doubled when she took the job with Winnipeg CFS, 82 kilometres away. On top of that, she said Tuesday, she was attending university full time and her CFS supervisor knew it.
Among the 20 or so cases she was assigned when she started was the Phoenix Sinclair file. Two months earlier, her parents, Kematch and Steve Sinclair, were reunited with the baby apprehended at birth in April 2000. When the baby was returned to them on Sept. 5, 2000, it was with conditions set out in a six-month service agreement. If they didn't comply, it said, they'd risk losing Phoenix to care once more. There were six conditions, including meeting with their CFS worker regularly and having an in-home support worker coach them on parenting and life skills.
Chief-Abigosis didn't visit Phoenix and her family until February 2001 -- nearly three months after she was assigned to the case. There is no record of her doing any work on the file in all of December and January. Chief-Abigosis said she had a demanding caseload and the troubled young family was no different than any other on her list. She testified she may have tried several times to drop in on the family, who had no phone, and failed to make a note of it. She couldn't say why the in-home support worker's contract to teach the parents how to parent wasn't renewed when it expired in December.
She told the inquiry she tendered her CFS resignation in July 2001 partly because the strain of attending school while working full time was taking a toll on her. The other reason was the death of three-month-old Echo Sinclair. Phoenix's sister was born April 29, 2001, to Kematch and Sinclair. Chief-Abigosis didn't know Kematch was pregnant. Echo died July 15, 2001, of an acute respiratory infection. Chief-Abigosis said that was a traumatic event and she decided to quit working for the agency.
Her supervisor at the time, Angie Balan, testified Phoenix's parents were expected to comply with the terms of the six-month service agreement.
When Phoenix was in between social workers -- after a previous worker quit in October and before Chief-Abigosis started and took over the file in November -- Balan said she relied on reports from the in-home support teacher to monitor the couple. There were no reports of any problems, she said, referring to case notes she reviewed. Balan has no recollection of the case and said her supervisory notes from that time have not been located.
She said the case file indicates she met with Chief-Abigosis one month before the service agreement expired to see what was happening on the case. Other than Chief-Abigosis's notes saying she dropped by the home and no one was there, there was no contact with the family or any of their supports and relatives in the community.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 28, 2012 A4
History
Updated on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 10:13 AM CST: adds Cover it Live, changes headline
1:48 PM: restores print headline, removes Cover it Live
More Local
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
Poll
Most Popular Local
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Leaving a gang isn't easy — Sidney Letandre, now a paraplegic, knows it all too well
- Head-on collision kills pickup driver
- Second man charged in 2012 slaying
- Bethania board puts CEO on leave amid probe
- Accused in alleged smartphone scam charged
- Two charged in golf course burglary
- One dead in Highway 10 collision
- Police make grow-op bust
- Golf course advocates see red after meeting
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Co-worker 'sick' today? Maybe it's the $17M flu
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- '2 minutes after I read the winning numbers, I retired': Winnipeg lotto winner
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Sex charges for ex-club boss
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Winning 6/49 ticket purchased in Winnipeg
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- 'Responsible Winnipeg' ads appear on sign run by mayor-owned Goldeyes' baseball park
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- A child-custody catastrophe
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Co-worker 'sick' today? Maybe it's the $17M flu
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- '2 minutes after I read the winning numbers, I retired': Winnipeg lotto winner
- Parents, community relieved and elated as missing boy found safe
- No threat from bag found at Winnipeg Square
- Man missing since 2009 found safe
- Earls on Main going, but new one coming
- Province announces service for Elijah Harper
- Leaving a gang isn't easy — Sidney Letandre, now a paraplegic, knows it all too well
- Elijah Harper: The humble man who said no
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Bethania board puts CEO on leave amid probe
- 'It's a beautiful story': There's not always a tomorrow to say you're sorry or make things right
- Police make grow-op bust
- Carving out a niche in traditional art
- Golf course advocates see red after meeting
- Two charged in golf course burglary
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Province introduces changes to rules governing landlords, renters
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- Ochre Beach residents are 'thankful everybody got out'
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Sex charges for ex-club boss
- Giving your money, and expertise, to charity
- WestJet to add Brandon
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- A child-custody catastrophe
- Mental-health patients get own ER
- Black market in moose thrives
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Steen invests $1M in family entertainment centre
- Earls on Main going, but new one coming
- Province introduces changes to rules governing landlords, renters
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- Boost same-sex curricula: union
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.