Government to release previously-secret details on child deaths

The government has partially lifted a veil of secrecy over the stories of children who died under the watch of child protection officials.

The chief coroner announced an overhaul of New Brunswick's child death review committee on Wednesday, committing to a new process that will see summaries of children's deaths made public.

The children will still be anonymous, but the public will now know details like the child's age, cause and circumstances of death and whether the child was in care or receiving services from child welfare officials.

• FULL COVERAGE: The Lost Children
• 9 more vulnerable children have died and we don't know why
• 'It's really a scandal': Reasons for 53 deaths of at-risk children hidden by secretive committee

"I believe this is a step forward and a very positive step,"child and youth advocate Norm Boss said.

"How it all plays out in the future, we will have to wait and see."

For decades, the children's stories how they died and if anything could have been done to save them have been secret, a CBC News investigation called The Lost Children found.

Now, that is beginning to change, putting New Brunswick in line with provinces like Alberta that have more detailed public reporting.

At least 57 children have died from unnatural causes under the watch of social services in the past two decades.

The child death review committee was created in 1997after 28-month-old Jackie Brewer was left to die of dehydration in a dark Saint John room.

Twenty years ago this month, people gathered outside the courthouse, angry at what happened to the little girl.

• Jackie Brewer, the 2-year-old who was ignored to death
• John Ryan Turner, Jackie Brewer get memorial

Jackie's aunt, along with family members of other children, have said the committee lost its original purpose in the years since Jackie's death.

Public can track what government does

The government promised to make its child death review system more transparent following The Lost Children series.

On Wednesday, chief coroner GregoryForestell revealed a new terms of reference for the child death review committee that adds new responsibilities around informing the public.

In addition to more public reporting, people will be able to track the status of child death recommendations online. It will be updated quarterly to reflect any changes by government.

"If we were to make a recommendation and the ministry responded that they would take this under advisement, that's a response," Forestell said.

"But that's not a satisfactory response."

Forestell said the changes will make the review process stronger and more transparent.

Reports won't point fingers

The children will still be anonymous in the reports. Privacy law prevents the government from revealing their identities.

The reports also may not go into detail on cases where the system failed a child.Its terms of reference prevents the committee from commenting on "the conduct of individual employees."

But the coroner will be able to flag cases with systemic failures to Boss for further investigation.

The reports will also be written in clearer language so it's easier to understand what happened. Even Boss couldn't understand them sometimes.

He hopes the end result will be a more informed public.

"An informed public is a public that can sometimes prevent things from happening," he said.

"Child deaths just happens to be one of them."

Suicide, homicide and accidents

The government also revealed more details about how children have died.

Of 23 unnatural deaths between 2010 and 2016, twelve of those deaths have been deemed accidents. Another four children died by suicide.

One case was a homicide and the cause of another six deaths are undetermined.

Twenty-two children died from natural causes.

The chief coroner will release a regular reports on child deaths, including an annual statistical report that details how children are dying.

Part 1:The Lost Children: The secret life of death by neglect

Jackie Brewer, the 2-year-old who was ignored to death

How New Brunswick's child death review system works

Part 2:The Lost Children: 'A child that dies shouldn't be anonymous'

Haunted byJuli-Anna: An 'agonizingly painful' preventable death

Part 3:The Lost Children: Change on horizon for First Nations child welfare

Mona Sock, a life stolen by abuse

Part 4:The Lost Children: Government weighs privacy over transparency in child deaths

Baby Russell: A few minutes of life, then a knife in the heart

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