Injury that caused Serenity’s death ‘not criminal’: RCMP
The RCMP have ruled that the death of four-year-old Serenity — a little girl who spent her final days in hospital on life support after suffering catastrophic head injuries — was “not criminal in nature.”
“After a thorough investigation, it was determined that the specific injury which caused Serenity’s death was not criminal in nature,” RCMP said in a news release issued late Friday evening.
RCMP said they wanted “to clarify” that the charge of failing to provide the necessaries of life, laid jointly against Serenity’s 56-yearold great-aunt and 55-year-old great-uncle was “in relation to the circumstances and conditions” in which the little girl lived while under their care.
At a news conference earlier on Friday, RCMP announced the charge against Serenity’s caregivers, but they provided no information about the circumstances surrounding her death. They cited at the time and in the Friday night news release that they could not give more details since the matter was before the courts.
The girl’s great-aunt and greatuncle are charged jointly with one count of failing to provide the necessaries of life between May 3, 2013, and Sept. 18, 2014.
Serenity was airlifted to an Edmonton hospital on Sept. 18, 2014, with head injuries, severe hypothermia, serious malnutrition, and anal and genital bruising. She died nine days later, after being removed from life support. She weighed less than 18 pounds.
“I’ve been waiting to hear those words for three years now,” said Serenity’s mother earlier on Friday. “There’s no way this should have been pushed to the back burner for so long. The evidence was in plain sight.”
She said the RCMP in the province where she now lives informed her of the charge on Thursday. While Serenity’s mother is happy a charge was laid, she is disappointed they are not more serious.
“It’s not enough. It’s definitely not enough in my eyes,” she said.
Serenity had been in foster care before she was placed with distant relatives over the objections of her mother. Those relatives were granted guardianship despite reports of abuse. Child welfare then closed Serenity’s file.
The Journal is not identifying the accused because Serenity has siblings who cannot be identified under Alberta’s child welfare legislation.
At a Friday news conference, police emphasized the complexity of the investigation involving multiple agencies.
“There is no doubt in my mind, and I’m sure yours as well, this is a very difficult time for the family and the community of Serenity,” said Chief Supt. George Stephenson of RCMP K Division. He said he couldn’t provide further details because the case is now before the court.
A spokesman for the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service explained the reasoning for bringing the charge against the caregivers.
“As Crown prosecutors we are duty bound to review cases against two standards — based only upon the evidence is there a reasonable likelihood of conviction, and second, is a prosecution in the public interest?” said assistant deputy minister Eric Tolppanen. He said the standards were met. “This case, as with other matters before the court, will be firmly and fairly prosecuted. Earlier this morning the accused each made an appearance before the justice of the peace.”
The two caregivers have been released on bail. They are forbidden from having contact with specific family members, including Serenity’s mother. They are also not allowed to have anyone under the age of 18 at home without written consent of a supervisor, with some listed exceptions. They are scheduled to appear in Wetaskiwin provincial court on Nov. 9.
Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley said Serenity’s story is a call to action.
“Three years is a long time to wait for a family who has already suffered such heartbreaking loss. And we know that Serenity’s family, and Albertans, want answers," she said in a statement Friday.
United Conservative Party children’s services critic Jason Nixon said Friday he is pleased to finally see movement on the case. Hopefully, he said, Serenity’s family is closer to justice.
Serenity’s case was highlighted in a report produced by Alberta child and youth advocate Del Graff in November 2016. A subsequent investigation by Journal columnist Paula Simons revealed Serenity’s true identity, the full extent of her injuries and the shortcomings of the investigation into her death.
Nixon is a member of the all-party child intervention panel formed after the public outcry over Serenity’s death. Now in its second phase of work, the panel is tasked with examining the child welfare system and recommending changes. Nixon doesn’t think a charge in the case will change the group’s focus, but he wants Children’s Services Minister Danielle Larivee to explain what went wrong in the department’s handling of the file.
“In my mind, it’s pretty clear that this case has been mismanaged at every stage, including before Serenity’s death,” Nixon said. “I appreciate there is criminal evidence before the court right now, but we know there were things that went wrong that prevented justice for Serenity and her family.”