Mr. Bruce McNeill, Director of Practice, MCFD Fraser Region
Mr. McNeill,
I respectfully submit an appeal to you today on behalf of Paul and Zabeth Bayne and their three children.
You are fully informed that Paul and Zabeth Bayne are presently involved in the hearing before Judge Tom Crabtree in which Mr. Finn Jensen, the Ministry of Children and Family Development counsel is seeking to obtain for you a Continuing Care Order for all three children. Mr. Jensen has nearly completed the Ministry’s presentation and now you and the Baynes are waiting for available court dates when the hearing will conclude with the Baynes’ lawyer, Mr. Doug Christie’s presentation of witness testimonies, evidence and conclude the hearing.
Most certainly Judge Crabtree understands this case. He understands that your team has held all three Bayne children in care for almost the entirety of two years and six months. He recognizes that the Ministry’s case is built upon a commitment to a disputed medical diagnosis of non accidental shaking induced injury to the youngest of the three children and that no evidence exists of injury or potential risk to the two older siblings. He is aware that no criminal charges proceeded to the Court with respect to the injuries of the youngest child. He appreciates that you have chosen to disregard your own counsel’s recommendation to return the two older children to the Baynes – a recommendation that Mr. Jensen conveyed to you because in his opinion there is no evidence to keep them and that he cannot win a case to retain them. These are reasons why even before the hearing proper has concluded; his Honour permitted Mr. Christie on behalf of the Baynes to submit to him their application for a variance of the original Interim Order of Dec 14, 2007 which placed the three children in Ministry care. The Baynes have asked the Judge for the return of the boys to their custody.
On April 29th 2010, Mr. Jensen will have opportunity in Court to express the Ministry’s objection to this application.
I knew Paul and Zabeth Bayne nine years ago when they were active in the church that I pastored. I enjoyed the privilege of officiating their wedding ceremony. I know them as deeply committed people of faith, hard working individuals, highly principled and enjoying a good reputation with hundreds of people. Their conscientious efforts to recover their family are understandable as is the significant support from friends and acquaintances who advocate for them. I myself have written daily blog posts to tell their story. This letter is posted today and copied to others.
I acknowledge your position and role within the Fraser Regional MCFD and your oversight of this highly publicized case. My sincere appeal to you today is to instruct your lawyer Mr. Jensen, to convey to Judge Crabtree on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 that the Ministry will not object to the immediate return of the two Bayne boys to Zabeth and Paul Bayne.
Sincerely,
Dr. Ron Unruh
On April 27, Mr. McNeill responded to me..
Dear Mr. Unruh
Thank you for your e-mail note.
Due to privacy concerns and the fact that this matter is before the Court it would be inappropriate for me to comment on this matter, but I do appreciate your interest and your concern for this family.
Yours truly, Bruce McNeill, Executive Director of Practice, Fraser Region
Perhaps should more people write to him as well? Where would one send a letter?
ReplyDeleteAmen, Amen, Amen!
ReplyDeleteThank you Ron, God speed on the decision to return the boys to Paul and Zabeth. Thank you Lord for you covering over this entire situation. In Jesus mighty name. Amen.
To Anon,
ReplyDeleteMy caution would be not to write anonymously and to be gracious in your invitation to Mr. McNeill to do the reasonable thing. What none of us want is to jeopardize the Baynes' possibilities with unnecessary rhetoric. Agreed?
People have reached him at bruce.mcneill@gov.bc.ca
Hello Dr Unruh. I seriously applaud you for speaking up with these people. With that said can you contact me. A quick google search will help you. Timothy Moorley
ReplyDeleteGod bless and strengthen you, Ron, as you advocate for Paul & Zabeth Bayne and their family. May this issue have a speedy resolution. We are in prayer that this letter to Bruce McNeill will find favour.
ReplyDeleteA mailed and signed letter might have a bit more impact, so if there is a mailing address, could you please publish this as well.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely, an incorrectly worded letter (or hundreds of such letters by individuals "not in full posession of the facts") directed to this one individual may indeed have the reverse effect, by providing MCFD ammunition to plead their case that MCFD staff have been continually subjected to aggresive attempts to change their position and to also to bend court decisions in the family's favour, against the best interests of the children.
I would encourage people to write with concern for themselves and their children and their neighbors and use the Baynes situation as an example only, so they can have concerns on record. Politicians can continue to ignore these concerns at their peril.
Martin Luther King stated "an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." The general thrust of a letter needs to keep this in mind.
This child protection "process" is far too costly in terms of time, damage to the children and family, financially, and represents a growing, and blatant disregard and violation of citizens trust in government and their basic human rights.
This quote I notice from a social worker's email signature: "If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in bed with a mosquito." Mahatma Ghandi
Perhaps the parents in this rare case, the Baynes might be categorized as the mosquito for MCFD.
I wondered why a social worker would connect with such a quote, as I did not understand what the phrase would have to do with providing of services or child protection. Was it an inside joke? Do some child protection social workers exist to make parents lives miserable?
I found a better quote associated with Former US Senator Nancy Schaefer, a vocal critic of US Child Protection. This states what an individual can do in a positive sense: "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything,
but I can do something; And what I can do,
that I ought to do, by the grace of God I shall do." -- Edward Everett Hale, Former Chaplain of the United States Senate.
To most people, a mosquito serves no useful purpose in the life, but is capable of inflicting considerable misery, and even death by disease on those they feed off of. Few would correlate the actions of a mosquito as useful.
I submit that the child protection industry has a large population of such mosquitoes that are more interested in feeding themselves, and have no concern with their impact on those that provide their "food."
Write those letters, people.
It is becoming more imperative that we take up and support causes such as this in committed and peaceful ways of arbitration and negotiation. Thank you for taking the time to use your friendships, time and giftedness to challenge the system, challenge our sense of justice and challenge our commitment to calling on Gods' help in such a needful matter
ReplyDeleteRon, it must be about time for Bruce McNeill to get another open letter by Ron Unruh, would be a good press release piece!
ReplyDelete