B.C. Social Services removed a 3-year-old boy from his parents' custody because they were too poor to find safe housing, reports Paul Willcocks of the Times Colonist. Over the course of a year, the boy was shuttled through four foster homes, showed injuries consistent with being shaken at the third, and was finally returned to his parents this July with cerebral palsy as a result of his injuries. The only factor preventing the parents from keeping their child initially was the inability to afford safe housing. The couple applied for and was denied assistance, despite the fact that finding them an apartment would have been at least 50 cheaper than paying for foster care. The family finally found suitable housing, but now faces lifelong medical costs of caring for the child.
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