Murder-suicide inquest raises questions about how P.E.I. deals with at-risk families

Dr. Craig Malone, the presiding coroner in an inquest into the deaths of a P.E.I. mother and daughter in July 2020, stands in front of a courtroom in Charlottetown on Monday, Dec. 6, 2021. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Teresa Wright)

CHARLOTTETOWN — A coroner's inquest jury is calling for greater monitoring of P.E.I. residents who suffer from chronic mental illness and for improvements in how police and other aid agencies share information following the murder-suicide of a nine-year-old and her mother.

But questions remain about the effectiveness of changes implemented in response to an inquest seven years ago in Prince Edward Island after another murder-suicide involving a mother and child. That 2015 inquest also called for better information-sharing among agencies that work with high-risk families in crisis.

On Thursday, the coroner's inquest into the 2020 deaths of Danielle White, 47, and her daughter, Olivia Rodd, found that White killed Olivia before taking her own life, confirming findings from police and post-mortem reports. The two died of acute carbon-monoxide poisoning at White's home in Charlottetown in July 2020 after White sealed it from the inside with plastic and tape and burned charcoal.

The inquest heard that White had struggled for years with mental illness and had been hospitalized several times for previous suicide attempts and self-harm.

Child protection services had been called to intervene on several occasions following these and other incidents over the years, but these interactions were needed primarily to protect White's other children from a different relationship. Olivia's father, Danny Rodd, acted as Olivia's main caregiver due to White's mental health struggles, but they shared custody.

Despite these incidents, White's psychiatrist, Dr. Heather Keizer, wrote a letter in 2013 supporting White having more parenting time with her children. Keizer testified that White was a chronic suicide concern, but never considered her at risk of harming anyone else.

The inquest jury made five recommendations, including that people who are "chronic mental health patients" and have had multiple interventions with authorities be subject to increased monitoring and support. When children are involved, this enhanced monitoring should be mandatory, the jury recommended.

The jury also said police should review their procedures in cases of potential suicide attempts to ensure other authorities are notified.

This came in response to an incident in April 2020, three months before their deaths, when the Canada Border Services Agency intercepted a package White had ordered from Mexico containing medication that could be used for suicide. Charlottetown police Det. Darren MacDougall conducted a wellness check on White at her home, and she acknowledged purchasing the drug. But she said it was a "knee-jerk" decision and police needn't be concerned about her.

MacDougall told the inquest that he found her "well-kept" and did not notice children present, so he did not take any further actions or notify any other agencies.

The inquest jury also called for better information-sharing within a provincial "bridge program" that brings together service organizations and allows them to collaborate when dealing with high-risk families. The program was created in response to a 2015 inquest into a murder-suicide that left four-year-old Nash Campbell dead at the hands of his mother, Trish Hennessey, in western P.E.I.

That inquest heard evidence showing officials with child protection, police and community mental health organizations had clear warning signs that Nash could be in danger, including an explicit threat from Hennessey that she would kill herself and her son. But the inability of those organizations to share the information due to privacy policies and red tape left those warnings unheeded.

During the inquest that concluded this week, the jury was told about the "bridge program" created to help families in crisis after Nash's death. But due to privacy, the chair of this program, Denise Walsh-Lyle, was unable to confirm whether this program was used to address concerns about Olivia and her mother before their deaths.

On Thursday, Olivia's father called this lack of disclosure "disrespectful." Danny Rodd said if he had been given more information about White's mental health risks, including the Mexico drug incident, he would have done more to keep Olivia safe.

P.E.I.'s child and youth advocate, Marvin Bernstein, says his office has been conducting its own review of the case and will decide soon whether to launch an official investigation. That probe could delve further into systemic issues flagged by the jury in this case with a view to making more detailed recommendations aimed at the government agencies involved, he said.

Bernstein noted his position as P.E.I.'s first-ever independent child advocate is a "legacy" of the Nash Campbell coroner's inquest in 2015, after that jury recommended the position's creation. But he said his work since his appointment in 2020 has been met with pushback from some government departments and agencies. "I'm always trying to assert that we have a statutory role and we have a unique responsibility," Bernstein said in an interview.

If his office does launch its own independent investigation into Olivia's death, it would likely look at actions taken in response to the 2015 inquest, given the similarities in recommendations, Bernstein said.

"It's very unsettling to have, in such a small jurisdiction, such a small province, two situations, two tragedies where you have murder-suicides," he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 25, 2022.

MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES

Island Helpline: 1-800-218-2885

Canada Suicide Prevention Service: 1-833-456-4566

Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention

Canadian Mental Health Association