'Can't get on board': Proposed change to death reviews worries Alberta child advocate

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith talks to reporters on Jan. 6, 2025, during a media conference announcing a pipeline partnership between the province and Enbridge. (CTV News Calgary)

EDMONTON — Alberta’s child and youth advocate is questioning a proposed change from Premier Danielle Smith’s government that would limit investigations into deaths of young adults.

“I can’t get on board with this one,” Terri Pelton said in an interview, adding she never asked the government for the change.

Pelton’s office regularly reports on cases of death and serious injury of children and youth involved with the child intervention system, up to the age of 22. It sometimes reviews cases of those who are older.

If passed, a bill proposed last week in the legislature by the United Conservatives would cap that reporting at the age of 20.

Pelton said it’s critical to keep track of long-term outcomes for these young people.

“If we don’t know about them passing away, we can’t look at what happened for them that might have improved the services for other young people who are coming up through the system,” the advocate said.

Children and Family Services Minister Searle Turton told reporters in the legislature last week that the government is focused on ensuring those under 18 are looked after.

“By actually changing these reporting requirements, it will allow the (advocate) to be hyper-focused on that age category as well.”

He said the bill still mandates child death reviews for youth under 18 and the advocate would have the option to review deaths of those up to 20.

“It actually is doing a great service to many of the children that are within care, because it’s going to make sure that there’s more eyeballs on those younger ages,” he said.

Pelton said that’s “not a rationale that I understand.”

She said her office serves thousands of young people through direct advocacy services and can still do that while completing reviews.

“We’re able to do both,” she said.

Pelton said the change won’t stop her office from advocacy work that goes beyond reporting on fatalities and injuries.

But she reiterated that the government needs to do more for young adults 18 and over.

“I’ve said many times that I believe that young people transitioning out of care and into emerging adulthood need more supports, and one of the ways we know how they’re doing is by receiving notifications of their death and then reviewing their services,” she said.

“I’m worried about young people leaving government care where the government has been their parent, and they don’t have the natural supports of their own family.”

Pelton’s latest annual report notes that in 2023-24, her office received 83 notifications of serious injuries or deaths of young people. Of those, she said 20 were among those aged 20 to 23 — about a quarter of total cases.

Opposition NDP critic Diana Batten called the government’s decision reckless.

“How can we track outcomes without the data? Ignoring the facts isn’t going to improve the services we can provide to our children and youth.”

Batten said there are better ways for the government to empower the advocate to better focus on children, such as boosting funding for Pelton’s office.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 4, 2025.

Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press