Plaintiffs apply to certify class action lawsuit against Whitehorse school

WARNING: This story contains disturbing details. 

Nine new affidavits filed with the Supreme Court of Yukon contain allegations that paint an even darker picture of the use of holds and seclusion at Jack Hulland Elementary School in Whitehorse. 

None of the allegations have been proven or tested in court. 

The application is for the certification of a class action lawsuit on behalf of students at the school who experienced holds, restraints and seclusion from 2002 to 2022. The Yukon Department of Education and the Jack Hulland School Council are named as defendants. Neither have yet filed statements of defence.

The class action lawsuit was proposed in October 2022 by two representative plaintiffs, still children, and their guardians. At the time, a statement of claim was filed. It alleged the two plaintiffs were "subjected to holds and involuntary seclusion on a frequent and repeated basis" at the school, beginning in 2015. 

In November 2021, the RCMP opened an investigation after being made aware of allegations. The RCMP never specified the origin of those allegations. The same month, Yukon Child and Youth Advocate, Annette King, announced the launch of a review into the issue.The Yukon education department also ordered an internal review, which confirmed holds and isolation were used at the school prior to 2020.

The child plaintiffs and their guardians are covered by a partial publication ban and sealing order.  

The application filed on Feb. 14 will come before the Yukon Supreme Court in June. If a judge certifies it, it will permit the plaintiffs to pursue a class action lawsuit.  

In the application, the parent of one of the plaintiffs says her child was on anxiety medications by Grade 1. She alleges this was the result of the child's experience at the school. 

The application also included an assessment of one of the plaintiffs, a child, by B.C. psychologist, Mel Kaushansky. 

Kaushansky's report found the child has post-traumatic stress disorder and depression as a result of chronic exposure to holds, restraints and seclusion. 

Kaushansky said he didn't believe the child would have their current psychological problems if it hadn't been for their experience at Jack Hulland. 

Another affidavit was filed by a parent who says she was personally aware of seven students who had been subject to holds and isolation. This included being locked in a room for hours, through lunch and recess, the affidavit reads, while cameras kept an eye on them. 

One former student, now an adult, alleges staff "held [her] in the air like a flying squirrel" as they took her to isolation on more than one occasion. She alleges her shoulder was once injured in the process. The CBC is not naming the former student, who was a child at the time of the alleged incidents.

Another time, the student says she tried to climb over the dividers separating the isolation spaces. She alleges school staff smeared the dividers with butter to keep her contained. She says in the affidavit she had suicidal thoughts by Grade 5 and wasn't able to pursue an education beyond Grade 9 because she can't see schools as anything but a prison. 

The parent of a separate former Jack Hulland student filed her own affidavit, saying she knew staff had complained about her child's behaviour while her child was a student. CBC is not naming the parent to protect the identity of the child.

The parent says she attended frequent meetings about finding solutions. After news broke in 2021 that the RCMP were investigating use of holds at the school, she tried to access her child's file, including any incident reports that may have detailed any holds or restraints, according to her affidavit.

Over the course of a year, she alleges that she was shuffled between contacts at Jack Hulland, the department of education, student support services and her child's new school. In the fall of 2022, she says she received a file, but it didn't contain any incident reports.

The parent's affidavit includes printed emails between herself and various officials, including a note from the assistant deputy minister for education that said the records were being held under a court order and could not be released.

James Tucker, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs in this case, says he has directed multiple parents to inquire about the records of their children. He says none have been successful. 

Additional affidavits from students, parents and former teachers allege having seen children strip naked in isolation, or crack isolation room windows by throwing themselves against the windows. One of the parents of the two plaintiffs alleges she was unaware that "study hall" meant her child was frequently isolated.

She says her child attempted suicide at school. She felt the suggestion from staff was that she wasn't doing enough as a parent.