PENTICTON — Two former foster children are suing the B.C. government over claims their time as wards of the state set them up for lives of crime as adults.
Bre-Anne Buhler and Kael Svendsen filed matching lawsuits last week in B.C. Supreme Court in Penticton. They both name as defendants the Ministry of Children and Family Development and its director of child welfare.
Both are seeking unspecified damages, plus additional compensation for loss of earnings and future earnings.
Penticton lawyer Michael Patterson, who is representing Buhler and Svendsen, declined comment Monday, except to say his clients are “the tip of the iceberg.”
Svendsen’s notice of claim says he was placed with an alcoholic foster parent who provided him with alcohol on multiple occasions. Svendsen says he was later removed from the home by the RCMP, but had become an alcoholic himself by then and later turned to drugs.
The suit argues the director of child welfare is at fault because Svendsen was placed with an unsafe foster family and there was no plan in place to ensure his continual well-being.
“As a result of the director’s failures, the plaintiff suffers from alcohol addiction, criminality and a continuous transient homeless lifestyle,” the lawsuit says.
“The plaintiff has suffered from psychological and emotional trauma as a result of being homeless [and] being involved in criminality to support his drug and alcohol habit.”
Buhler’s notice of claim covers much of the same ground as Svendsen’s, but adds the director failed to ensure she had all of the supports she needed, including trauma counselling related to an episode she experienced in care, and failed to apply for unspecified benefits or entitlements on her behalf.
She also claims the director “failed to put in place any future planning of care for the plaintiff to assist the plaintiff in dealing with living independently as an adult exiting the care of the director.”
Neither the ministry nor the director of child welfare has filed a response to the claims. The ministry declined comment on Monday.
Buhler is currently serving a 28-month sentence handed down Aug. 12 for twice leading police on drug-fuelled chases in stolen vehicles last year. The case made headlines because the judge rejected the 17-month sentence proposed by Crown and defence.
Svendsen is also in jail, but awaiting trial on a multitude of charges, including break and enter, assault and escape from lawful custody. He has been behind bars since his arrest in November 2018, shortly after police in Osoyoos issued a public appeal for help finding him. At the time, he was wanted on eight warrants related to 21 charges.
