More Support for Baynes

December 28, 2009 permalink

Support for the Bayne family has expanded from the internet to the press, with a column by Raphael Alexander in the Vancouver Sun. Supporters who can be in Vancouver on January 3 are invited to a fund-raiser, details in the enclosed article.

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A Family In Need Of Reunification

By Raphael Alexander 28 Dec 2009

A Surrey family that had their three children seized by the government of British Columbia in October of 2007 is still desperately trying to get them back more than 26 months later. Their children were taken by the province after Child Services believed that the parents had shaken their then two-month-old baby girl, Bethany, even though those allegations now seem to be false, and government workers even advised their boys be returned as early as November of 2007.

The children have been in foster care ever since. The two boys who are aged five and four, respectively, and Bethany, now two, were taken by the Ministry of Child and Family Development when Paul and Zabeth Bayne were suspected of shaking their baby girl causing a head injury. The accusation is commonly known as “Shaken Baby Syndrome”. The Bayne’s insisted the injury occurred when their younger son tripped and fell on their daughter, but those pleas fell on deaf ears.

But the case has been fraught with concern about the power that government authorities have to seize children from their parents on slim evidence, and the lengthy time it has taken to restore the children to their parents again. Worse yet, evidence has surfaced which indicates the province had numerous opportunities to return their children, but for some reason did not.

From a correspondence dating back to July 14, 2008, a government lawyer, Finn Jensen, didn’t think the case for keeping the boys in government custody would stand up in court of law. A medical report from November of 2007, almost two months after the boys were seized, indicated absolutely no evidence of injury to the children, nor has any new evidence been presented in the two years since the family was torn apart by the government. The boys have been placed in four different foster homes in the Lower Mainland since they were taken by the state.

Then in April of this year a new and shocking revelation came to light that could explain the injuries of their daughter. Internal documents from the Ministry of Child Development revealed that the head injuries to the little girl were likely not caused by abuse, accident, or otherwise, but from a rare genetic disorder called glutaric aciduria.

Zabeth and Paul Bayne have had to find night jobs in the time since their children were abducted by the government, so that they can visit them during the days when they are granted access.

A court hearing on the alleged abuse will finally commence on January 10. Before then, the parents are holding a fund-raising concert entitled “For Love and for Justice” at Richmond Peace Mennonite Church on January 3 between 6:30-8pm. Those attending are encouraged to call the number 778-228-4717 to reserve a place. You can also visit several Facebook pages to learn more about their plight to get their children back.

For Love and for Justice: Facebook Event
The Bayne Campaign for Justice: Facebook Group
The Bayne Petition Site: Here

Adrian MacNair is a Vancouver writer who sometimes writes under his middle name, Raphael Alexander. You can read more at his blog here.

Source: Vancouver Sun