Home accused of giving pot to youth

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This article was published 28/02/2024 (606 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s families minister said her department called the police on a private, for-profit foster care provider for allegedly giving cannabis to troubled youth in its care.

The government has severed ties with the company and launched a review of other providers as a result, Nahanni Fontaine said Wednesday.

The department was made aware of allegations of the unauthorized distribution of cannabis to youth who were staying at Spirit Rising House facilities. It conducted a “comprehensive review” of its services, including unannounced visits to its group homes, Fontaine said.

“What became abundantly clear immediately is that that was indeed what was going on in some of those houses,” the minister said. “The issue is that we’re dealing with some of the most vulnerable, highly complex-needs children who have addictions.”

Her department issued a compliance order for Spirit Rising House to cease distribution of unauthorized cannabis and advised child welfare authorities and agencies not to place other youth with the service provider, Fontaine said.

Southeast Child and Family Services, which licensed Spirit Rising House to provide services, appointed co-managers to the foster homes, she said. The government wants to move the youth out of the company’s facilities as soon as possible.

“We are all working together, our department and Southeast, to ensure the safe and expeditious transition of children into new homes,” Fontaine said. “We know we have to do better in respect of supporting youth who are vulnerable and exponentially at risk.”

The Winnipeg Police Service confirmed Wednesday its child abuse unit is investigating, but could not provide further comment.

CBC first reported the allegations that Spirit Rising House had provided cannabis as a form of harm reduction for youth addicted to harder drugs such as methamphetamine.

Fontaine dismissed the “narrative” that giving youth cannabis is a form of harm reduction.

“Certainly, harm reduction is something that our government believes in — but in the legitimate options of harm reduction and certainly (what is) legal, as well,” she said.

“I refuse to believe or accept that the best we can offer the most vulnerable, the most traumatized children in our care right now (are) drugs as a means of keeping children placated and managed,” she added. “I would submit that Manitobans would agree that we have to do better, and that that is unacceptable.”

Fontaine said the province will review other foster care providers, but she didn’t provide specifics, noting her department is in the early stages of its investigation.

The Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth was advised of the allegations and the actions taken, the minister said.

Advocate Sherry Gott was not available for an interview Wednesday, but in an email said her office is monitoring the situation and concerns about Spirit Rising House to ensure children’s safety.

When asked to comment, Spirit Rising House co-owner Ian Rabb requested a list of written questions but did not respond to them by deadline.

Rabb, himself a recovering addict, is the co-owner and founder of a number of addictions treatment facilities in Manitoba. In 2016, he challenged Canada’s legalization of recreational cannabis, calling it a “gateway drug” that led him to harder drugs.

“I think it sends a bad message to our youth that it is available like alcohol on some levels,” Rabb said in a Global News interview at the time.

“Did I think that (use of harder drugs) was going to happen when I tried marijuana? I knew when I tried marijuana I liked it and wanted more of it,” Rabb is quoted as saying.

A 2017 Paediatrics & Child Health article titled “Cannabis and Canada’s Children and Youth” said marijuana use during adolescence can cause functional and structural changes to the developing brain, leading to damage.

“Marijuana use in this age group is strongly linked to: cannabis dependence and other substance use disorders, the initiation and maintenance of tobacco smoking, an increased presence of mental illness, including depression, anxiety and psychosis, impaired neurological development and cognitive decline, and diminished school performance and lifetime achievement,” the medical journal reported.

When asked if she’s concerned other providers may be offering unacceptable care, the minister said nothing has been brought to her attention beyond the Spirit Rising House allegations.

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“As minister responsible, it certainly is something we are looking into as a result of that,” Fontaine said. “My priority is to make sure these children are protected and have the services they need and are entitled to — that they are cared for and loved in a good way, in a proper way, in a legal way.”

When asked if Southeast CFS bears any responsibility for overseeing services provided by Rising Spirit Home, Fontaine said to ask the organization directly.

Southeast CFS did not respond to a request for comment.

“Our department is working with Southeast and their management to look at this issue and prioritize this,” she said about arranging the transition of children into new homes. “I would imagine everybody who claims to want to support children and cares about children and about their safety should be coming to the table to make sure those children are safely transitioned.”

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.

Every piece of reporting Carol produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.