24°c Partly cloudy
18°c Cloudy periods
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
Fact Check
Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.
More Local
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
More Local
(1 of 33 articles for today)
Forest fire situation unpredictable, premier says
7:04 PM 0Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger insists it’s too early and unpredictable to be optimistic about forest fire season in the province ...
Poll
Most Popular Local
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Mountie hospitalized, dog euthanized after crash near Saskatoon
- Province blows off wind megawatt goal
- City-wide average mosquito count drops
- Committee wants report on free replacement for garbage, recycling carts
- Pallister continues PST fight
- MP Glover files new version of disputed 2011 election expenses
- Known as kind, outgoing men
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Poolside feeding prompts eviction
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Stoppage of play off the field
- Game-day planning a must
- No mad dash for concessions
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Kenyan wins Manitoba Marathon
- Father blasts 'horrific' movie
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- Flood money paid for CEO's romantic trip
- Car in deadly crash stolen?
- UPDATE: Now with FAQ: Keeping the e-party going without the party-crashers
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Daycare provider charged with abandonment
- Poolside feeding prompts eviction
- Two people killed in crash north of Winnipeg
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- Province blows off wind megawatt goal
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Strong may they run: Manitobans reflect on that fateful day in Boston
- Bible Belt's bogeyman still haunts town
- Mountie hospitalized, dog euthanized after crash near Saskatoon
- City-wide average mosquito count drops
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Killer 'should stay in prison'
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Doctors blamed for death
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- $110-K worth of nickel plates stolen from Thompson mine
- A day in the life of 13,380 Manitoba Marathon participants
- Known as kind, outgoing men
- Stoppage of play off the field
- Bomber fans wowed by new stadium
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Squirrel crawls out of Winnipegger's toilet
- Developers to unveil plans for bold downtown tower
- Father blasts 'horrific' movie
- Teachers support adding sexual-orientation themes to all curricula
- The crime fighter's revolution
- Safeway stores likely to close
- Car in deadly crash stolen?
- Fishing for fashion
- City's first urban reserve born
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 be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe 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.