The Misery Machine - The Case of Phoenix Sinclair

Starting point is 00:00:00 We are going to be discussing a case that's been requested multiple times by our audience across multiple platforms, and that is the story of Phoenix Sinclair. Phoenix's case comes with a very large cast of characters, from caseworkers to relatives to bystanders simply concerned for the little girl's safety. And another thing that should be mentioned is the fact that due to the age of this case, there were very few pictures of some of the parties involved. Now, only does this mean that finding pictures of Phoenix was very difficult. It's actually impossible to find pictures of Phoenix's killers. We've seen some conjecture online that there is some Canadian law that offers protection to Phoenix's killers in this specific circumstance, but there's nothing we could find on that. If you are an expert on Canadian law, I would love to hear from you in the comments about what's

Starting point is 00:00:44 happening here because these monsters deserve no protection. But whether or not there are enough pictures available, it is not going to stop us from telling Phoenix's story. So without further ado, present to you the story of Phoenix Sinclair. the Camach and Steve Sinclair came from rather troubled backgrounds. Both of their birth families had issues with alcoholism and violence. While they were young, the Canadian Child and Family Services, or CFS, took them away and put them into foster care. Steve was born on May 15, 1980, and was taken in by the Winnipeg CFS on July 12, 1989, when a family member reported violence, alcoholism,

Starting point is 00:01:24 an essay within the Sinclair home. Steve spent the remainder of his childhood in three foster homes. He spent the most time in the third one. Steve temporarily ran away in February of 1998. Towards the end of his time in the system, he reportedly dove headfirst into the bottle and wrecked his relationship with his foster family. When he turned 18,

Starting point is 00:01:47 child welfare closed his case. Samantha was born on September 9th, 1981, and was removed from her home on June 21, 1993, after CFS and Winnipeg received word that Samantha's alcoholic mother was mistreating her. Samantha spent three years in government foster care until she became a permanent ward of Cree Nation child and family services. When she was 16, Samantha gave birth to a baby boy

Starting point is 00:02:14 who was taken in by the Cree Nation agency as a permanent ward. She kept her pregnancy to herself and didn't make any preparations leading up to her labor. Samantha made no attempts to be in her son's life. Various reports described Samantha and Steve as having a history of violence, but the specifics are unclear. Samantha and Steve began dating in 1998. She being pregnant again in 1999 and gave birth to Phoenix, Victoria, Hope Sinclair on April 23rd, 2000 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She was born a healthy baby, but the hospital staff quickly took issue with Samantha and Steve. Just like with her last pregnancy, Samantha was not prepared. She said she didn't like doctors, so she did not seek prenatal care. A couple did not have the necessary

Starting point is 00:02:59 supplies to just clothes or baby formula in their possession. A nurse asked Samantha point blank what her plans were for her baby, and Samantha said, I don't know. When a peg child and welfare services concluded Samantha and Steve were unfit to be parents. Same day she was born, Phoenix was promptly taken into the care of CFS. The Inks spent the first five months of her life in foster care. Her parents were granted visitation. And in September, CFS offered to

Starting point is 00:03:26 return Phoenix to her parents, provided they receive mandatory instruction and child care, undergo mental health evaluations, and allow for consistent visits from a social worker. These conditions were not properly enforced. Childcare instruction and the mental health evaluation

Starting point is 00:03:43 similarly were insufficient and lacking. In February of 2001, when Samantha was pregnant with Phoenix's sister, CFS worker Dolores Chief Abogesis visited the Camach Sinclair household to discuss more frequent social worker visits. More months later, these visits never came to fruition. Later that year in April, Samantha gave birth to Echo Sinclair. CFS considered Steve to be the primary caregiver for his daughters. In Samantha, separated in July, following a police response to a DV call to their home the

Starting point is 00:04:13 month before. Steve took Phoenix an echo with him. Echo died at only three months old from respiratory failure and complications from pneumonia. Steve said he loved Phoenix from the moment she was born. He was the one who chose her name. He wanted to be a father and give her the childhood he couldn't have. However, his actions would not back up his words. More often than not, Steve left Phoenix in the care of his sister Jenny or his friends,

Starting point is 00:04:40 a couple named Kim Edwards and Rohan Stevenson. CFS workers were aware that Jenny Sinclair and Kim Edwards and Rohan Stevenson were Phoenix's designated babysitters, but they did not make any record of who was watching the young girl or when. Caseworkers Kathy Epson, Lorna Hanson replaced Dolores Chief Abogesis following Echo's passing. They closed Phoenix's case file in October of 2001. Neither of them had seen Phoenix in person for an extended period of time. In November of 2002, a small chunk of styrofoam found its way into Phoenix's nose, and she was in pain. Rohan Stevenson, who is Steve Sinclair's friend and Phoenix's godfather, told Steve that Phoenix needed to go to a hospital right away.

Starting point is 00:05:26 Kim Edwards, who was another friend of Steve, said the same thing. Steve knew about the styrofoam, and so he took Phoenix to a walking clinic where he was told the foreign object would come out on its own with time. Now, Kim Edwards was unsure if Steve actually did take Phoenix to a clinic based on what the nurse allegedly said. So Kim took Phoenix herself. The clinic would not treat Phoenix because Kim did not have the little girl's medical information on hand. But they advised she could try removing the styrofoam with a pair of tweezers. Kim tried, but Phoenix was screaming and crying out in pain when she did. February 26, 2003, Phoenix finally went to the hospital to get the styrofoam removed.

Starting point is 00:06:05 There was her godfather Rohan, not Steve, who took her, and only because he smelled an awful smell while watching Phoenix. She had an infection, and she needed medicine for it. The hospital staff noted Phoenix's physical appearance and quickly suspected neglect. They sent a report to CFS. The reporter's name was redacted, but they said they did not think Steve Sinclair would give Phoenix her prescribed medication at the proper time if he was left unsupervised. We're into an official report from social worker Roberta Dick.

Starting point is 00:06:33 A foreign body was removed from Phoenix's nose, and the discharge in the nose was very foul smelling. Mucosa in her nose was red and sore. Antibiotics were prescribed, but, name redacted, did not know if the antibiotics would be given to Phoenix or not. The hospital requested that this matter be assessed further, given the concerns related to physical and medical neglect and inadequate care of the child. Phoenix remains in her father's care following her hospital visit. social worker Laura Forrest tried multiple times to visit Steve's home. Each time she did, no one would come to the door or Steve would say Phoenix was elsewhere. Laura Forrest's report on her first visit, two days after Phoenix went to the hospital, said Steve was sober but difficult.

Starting point is 00:07:18 He seemed annoyed at being in this predicament. Ms. Forrest noted Steve had a black eye which he actively avoided discussion of. Phoenix was with Steve's friends, but he did not give Ms. Forrest an address. When told that Laura Forrest would need to return to the Sinclair residence to see Phoenix in person, Steve only said, we will see about that. He also said he did not know about the styrofoam and the infection in Phoenix's nose. In her subsequent visits, when no one answered the door, she left her card. Her workload in an absence of other concerns kept her away from Phoenix's case until April 17th through May 9th.

Starting point is 00:07:56 She never saw Phoenix in person during these visits. In June, Steve hosted a party at his home. An anonymous reporter alerted social workers that Phoenix Sinclair was left unsupervised in the presence of alcohol and illicit substances. CVS once again got involved. Told Steve he could regain custody of his daughter after attending counseling for his alcoholism. However, he got Phoenix back without ever going to counseling. Now, according to Phoenix's file, in November, Steve's sister Jenny called Samantha and said Phoenix was alone. Steve had left her unattended in his house. Samantha brought Phoenix to her residence on Furby Street. Phoenix's time with her mother from November to January

Starting point is 00:08:36 went undocumented in her case file until Samantha's former roommate sent a report on January 15th, 2004. They alleged Samantha drank and consumed crack cocaine in her home in front of Phoenix. The roommate had not seen the family since Christmas. It seems that for this reason, officials decided this was not a high priority. And they finally gathered more information. Phoenix was no longer on the property. Barbara Kloss, an employee of the crisis response unit, spoke with the former roommate.

Starting point is 00:09:05 In her records, she wrote the following. As we continued to talk and I asked questions, source of referral told me that she discovered that some people came to pick up Phoenix around January 2nd through 4th and took her to their place in Selkirk. SOR further said that there has been much arguing going on among all the adults, but couldn't, slash wouldn't, elaborate on exactly who was doing the arguing and what it was they were actually arguing about. It was found that Phoenix was in a place of safety with a family named Stevenson who lived on Selkirk Avenue. An attempt to speak with the Stevenson family

Starting point is 00:09:43 was unsuccessful as both the home telephone number along with Mr. Stevenson's work phone number are out of service at this time. In the final paragraph, Barbara Kloss added, given that there is a possibility of risk to young Phoenix and with the uncertainty of where the child actually is at this time, and is recommended this file be open to Northwest intake for investigation and assessment. Because the situation has been an ongoing concern as it would appear from discussion with SOR, coupled with the history in both parents' files, a five-day response time is indicated. In short, Canada's child welfare system misplaced a child do their own incompetence. Barbara Kloss later said it was within her power to send an investigation team to Rohan Stevenson's home immediately.

Starting point is 00:10:28 But Phoenix was not considered a priority. So neither she nor her supervisor, Diana Vrier, took that step. It wasn't until January 21st when a pair of caseworkers, Lisa Conlin and Monica Marks, paid a visit to Rohan Stevens' home. They asked about Steve. Now, according to Lisa's record, Rohan said he didn't know where Steve was and that there was a lot of rumors and everyone is saying different things. Caseworker Conlin said that Phoenix seemed fine during her visit,

Starting point is 00:10:58 but she did not spend any time alone with the child or even spoke to her directly. Rohan said nothing about picking up Phoenix from Samantha's residence. The caseworker just assumed he was the one who did it. Caseworkers Conlin and Marks also visited Steve's home. He did not answer the door. According to their notes, looking inside, workers could see no signs that anyone had been there recently. The home was clean and furnished, but there was holes in the walls and lighting fixtures that were pulled off the ceiling. It didn't look like

Starting point is 00:11:30 anyone was staying there recently. Phoenix's file was closed again in February of 2004. Now also around this time, Kim Edwards and Rohan Stevenson broke off their relationship. It seems they were still living together and watching over Phoenix when Steve was unavailable. Rohan's sons also took on child care responsibilities despite being children themselves. Samantha was pregnant again that spring. This time, the father was her boyfriend, Carl Wesley McKay. Samantha was seen attending meetings held by Manitoba's Healthy Baby Community Support Program. She never brought Phoenix with her, and she always had excuses for her daughter's location.

Starting point is 00:12:09 Samantha began attending these bi-weekly meetings in March, but Phoenix wasn't in her care until April. Samantha and her mother visited the Stevenson household in her. took Phoenix with them. Born to Kim Edwards and Rohan Stevenson, it was just before Phoenix's fourth birthday. Rohan was warned by social workers not to let Samantha take Phoenix without their knowledge, but he did so anyway. Rohan would later testify the following. Samantha actually didn't seem that enthusiastic about the whole thing, but it was her mother

Starting point is 00:12:37 that was saying we'd like to raise our own kids. I assumed that they would take her and then Sam would get sick of her in two days and bring her back. had I known Samantha's mother was a crackhead, I certainly wouldn't have. That was the last time Rohan and Kim would see Phoenix. Kim spoke with CFS and was told that Phoenix wasn't her concern anymore. She also tried contacting the local police force, but they said they had to hear this from Steve directly. Steve didn't know Samantha's contact information or her address.

Starting point is 00:13:10 His sister Jenny was on speaking terms with Samantha, and she relayed information about Phoenix's well-being. He didn't know Samantha was living with her new boyfriend. Steve moved to Ontario and Jenny kept him updated about his daughter. Phoenix's file reopened in May. It wasn't from Kim's efforts nor from CFS suddenly realizing their mistakes. It was from Steve Sinclair's employment and income assistance caseworker. This caseworker who was unnamed in official documents had various responsibilities,

Starting point is 00:13:41 among them keeping her client's information on a digital database. A client's dependent children were also eligible to receive employment and income assistant benefits. Their database said Phoenix was living with Steve in April of 2004. Same month, Samantha took her from the Stevenson home. This caseworker was a mandated reporter. If she suspected any kind of mistreatment, she was to report it. While investigating Steve's file, social workers saw a note created on the 26th of April. It briefly stated that Phoenix Sinclair was under the care of a childless couple.

Starting point is 00:14:14 Despite Kim Edwards trying to contact them earlier, CFS said they did not know that Phoenix was with her mother until May of 2004. On the 13th, two social workers, Tracy Forbes and Kathleen Marks, visited Samantha Comanche's residence to get more concrete information. Caseworkers Forbes and Marks had two goals, see Phoenix in person and verify that she was cared for. And they knocked on the door, a man answered. He only called himself Wes and said Phoenix and Samantha were not home. Wes was Samantha's boyfriend Carl Wesley McKay. Phoenix was put on Samantha's EIA plan, but Samantha was on Carl's plan. Carl was Phoenix's de facto provider.

Starting point is 00:14:55 Caseworkers, Forbes, and Marks did not complete their goals on May 13th, so they tried again in June. No one answered the door, so they pushed their visit to July. Caseworker Forbes wrote a summary of the visit, and it follows. The home was tidy and well furnished. Phoenix was present and she appeared clean, healthy, and well-cared for. Samantha also appeared healthy. She denies abusing substances and having any difficulties coping with Phoenix. Samantha advised that her main support is her boyfriend.

Starting point is 00:15:23 Samantha advised that she would be registering Phoenix for nursery school in the fall. Caseworker Forbes surmised that Wes, who answered the door two months ago, was Samantha's boyfriend, but she didn't think to ask for his information. Phoenix was registered for school. She was registered at the Wellington Nursery School. between September 16th and 26th of 2004. According to the principal, it was a common practice for her to schedule a meeting to meet the child and the parents. This meeting never materialized.

Starting point is 00:15:51 School staff said they did not recognize the name Phoenix Sinclair, nor did they meet a child of that name during the month of September. Samantha and Carl had their child at the end of 2004, and Samantha was discharged from the hospital on December 1st. Because of Samantha's troubled history, CFS was called. social worker Shelley Wilcox noted the various reports about Phoenix's well-being. She easily gathered information about Samantha, but had a much harder time of learning about Carl. Ms. Wilcox's report shows she contacted EIA caseworker Ellen Waugh about Carl, but neither woman had an independent recollection of this conversation. When the trail ran cold, Ms. Wilcox tried speaking to hospital staff.

Starting point is 00:16:34 She tried speaking with Nurse Mary Wu, but Canada's Public Health Information Act barred her from giving the social worker the necessary information. Nurse Wu aided Samantha throughout her pregnancy. Later, she said she knew of Phoenix but had not seen her in person. Even if she did, she was concerned that the law would not allow her to give private information about her patients, despite being a mandated reporter. When Ms. Wilcox eventually saw Samantha, she closed the case file because she seemed well. She did not look into Carl McKay. Had social workers in CFS done their due diligence, they would have found that Carl Wesley McKay was a dangerous individual. They would have found his record of violent crime dating back to 1991, included charges of making threats, assault, and assault with a deadly weapon.

Starting point is 00:17:24 Carl McKay was no stranger to violence against his past romantic partners. His former girlfriend's identity is redacted in official documents. We do not know her name or even if she was his only victim. These records could easily be spread across various former girlfriends. With the publicly available information that we have, we know that Carl Wesley McKay's record includes the following incident. Brandishing a machete, breaking a nose, and various beatings, including one where he used a supporting leg from a bathroom sink. The mother of his two children said he once threatened to push one of their sons down a flight of stairs. She covered for his violence multiple times, until he was eventually arrested and charged.

Starting point is 00:18:04 He was living with a girlfriend and their children while in probation. Miriam Brown, who was his probation officer, would later say she feared for her safety after a meeting with Carl. She wrote to the Northwest Winnipeg CFS that she believed his partner and children were, at-risk due to Mr. McKay's presence in the home. Carl Wesley McKay's information and criminal record were available for social workers to view. But they didn't, choosing instead to believe that this stranger, simply named Wes, was not a threat whatsoever. In March, two sources of referral reported that Phoenix was not well.

Starting point is 00:18:41 Now, a source of referral or S-O-R can really be anyone, educators, police, medical personnel, counselors, social workers, etc. Most are mandated reporters, but they can simply be a community member, such as a friend, a family member, or a neighbor. According to these S-O-Rs, Phoenix was wetting her bed, acting out, and touching herself. These SOR saw Samantha locking her bedroom door, meaning Samantha's, before going out with her youngest child, the one that she had with Carl. Another time when they returned to Samantha's apartment, they heard crying coming from the bedroom. One of the SORs testified about a phone call she had with Samantha.

Starting point is 00:19:20 Samantha was bathing Phoenix and she heard her say that if she wouldn't play with herself so much, she wouldn't stink so much. Mind you, Phoenix would have been just a month shy of her fifth birthday at this point in our story. The SORs called CFS to alert them about their concerns. CFS said they had to give them their names and they were uncomfortable about doing so. One of the SORs was concerned that CFS wouldn't take their concerns seriously so she asked someone else to call on her behalf. CFS visited Samantha at her apartment. She manages somehow to just keep them in the hallway the entire visit. They do see her baby, and to them, the baby appeared healthy and happy, but they don't see Phoenix.

Starting point is 00:20:04 Surely, however, if the baby looks fine, and everything else must be fine, too, right? Well, that's what they thought. One day, the foster son of Carl's ex actually met Phoenix. It's unclear as to why anyone associated with Carl's exes would have been in Carl's presence given his history of violence, much less allowing their son to be around him. They said Phoenix had a wound on her head, which the foster son guessed was two days old or less. He asked Phoenix what happened, and Carl answered for her, claiming that she hit her head on a coffee table. Phoenix parroted his answer.

Starting point is 00:20:39 Foster's son suspected Carl had hurt her. However, he had run-ins with the law prior, so he was hesitant to call CFS. He told his foster mother instead, thinking she would call, but she didn't. Carl's oldest son, who was 14 years old at the time, also saw Phoenix. This is how he described her appearance. I quote, she looked like, she looked rough man. She looked all beat up and shit.

Starting point is 00:21:04 Like, she didn't look like she did when I first met her. I mean, she's just like all skinny and whatever. She just didn't look the same. In April 2005, Samantha and Carl moved to Fisher River, a Cree First Nations reserve north of Winnipeg. Phoenix went with them, along with her infant child, and Carl's youngest son from a previous relationship. Carl's son was 12 years old,

Starting point is 00:21:28 and his mother wanted to get him away from Winnipeg's gang culture, as she put it. She decided that Carl Wesley McKay was the safer option. Carl's older son joined them occasionally. Now, when I first read this, I found the idea of Winnipeg having gangs to be a bit weird.

Starting point is 00:21:45 I have no idea why, but in my head, I picture gang violence to be an us problem, despite knowing there are gangs all over the world. However, Winnipeg has its fair share of street gangs, and organized crime families can also be found in the Montreal and Toronto areas. The more you know. Carl found work as a substitute school bus driver. His criminal record didn't seem to be an issue.

Starting point is 00:22:11 He also had distant relatives living on the reserve and the neighboring one as well. One asked about the child in Carl's car. Carl said Phoenix was his girlfriend's kid and that she, this is his words, was too ugly to be his child. Now another relative visited Carl's home and noticed there were no signs of a little girl living there. Carl and Samantha did visit once and she asked about Phoenix. A couple said Phoenix was with her granny and laughed. This relative also recalled a time she saw Carl and Samantha walking with their child. Phoenix trailed behind them.

Starting point is 00:22:45 Samantha yelled at Phoenix too. Fucking hurry up and walk. Carl's niece visited him many times so she only saw Phoenix twice. The first time she said Phoenix was small, skinny and unhealthy, and her hair was short. Carl called Phoenix a fucking bitch and isolated her in a dark room. Two hours later, Carl did not let her out. Second time, Carl's niece saw Phoenix, she said, she was in the room, first room on the left. I went to the door, opened it, and she was standing there with a blanket over her head. She was just standing there looking at me, and I asked her

Starting point is 00:23:17 what her name was because I didn't know if that was Phoenix or not. But she just stood there and my uncle told me to get out of that room, shut the door and get out. So I did. Carl's niece didn't report this to CFS because she was afraid of what Carl would do if he found out. Allison Kekawash doesn't mince words about her uncle, Carl Wesley McKay. Because he's wicked. Kekawash used to take her own baby to the house McKay rented in Fisher River, but her first play date with five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair was cut short when the little girl accidentally knocked another child to the floor. McKay grabbed Phoenix roughly, called her a bed and threw her in a room. Can't remember if there was a bed in there or not? It was a dark room.

Starting point is 00:24:00 The next time Kekawash visited McKay, Phoenix was again alone in the dark room. And she was standing there with a blanket over her head. She was in a panty and she was just standing there looking at me. The little girl's body was covered in marks. I don't know if it was bruises or scrapes or dirt. About a week later, she returned to the house. It's like I felt this bad feeling, as if my, as if Wesley killed somebody. Kekawash walked in through the back door.

Starting point is 00:24:42 Her eyes drawn into the basement steps. What did you see when you walked in? drips of blood. Carl McKay, usually lying down, was running up and down the basement steps in a cleaning frenzy. Samantha Keymatch was sitting at a computer weeping. Kekawash asked where Phoenix was. They told her she was in Ontario with her father. Because she was a bad little girl from what my uncle told me.

Starting point is 00:25:06 Kekawash disagrees. Sweet, innocent girl. Today, Kekawash was asked why she didn't report the abuse. I was scared of my uncle. Phoenix's life with Samantha and Carl quickly became hell on earth. Her bedroom was a cold, dark basement, which was often locked. She was degraded, starved, and denied medical attention. Carl beat Phoenix, sometimes with his hands and feet, sometimes with objects, the handle of a fridge, a broomstick, a pole.

Starting point is 00:25:45 He shot her with a BB gun. He played a game he called Choking the Chicken, where he would choke her until she fell unconscious. When Samantha wasn't watching idly by, she was involved more directly. One night, Phoenix threw up, and the couple forced her to eat her own vomit on the floor. At only five years old, CFS received a total of 13 reports about Phoenix's mistreatment at the hands of her family. On June 11, 2005, Carl's son witnessed the beating that would take Phoenix's life. She was in the basement. For 15 to 20 minutes, Carl beat her without stopping, while Samantha simply watched from the staircase. He was done.

Starting point is 00:26:27 the couple both left the children in the house alone. Carl's son went down to the basement to check on Phoenix. Her body was cold and she was not breathing. He didn't say a word to anybody because he was scared of what would happen if he did. Carl and Samantha came back home. They tried resuscitating Phoenix by performing CPR and running water on her. Instead of calling law enforcement or medical professionals, they got to work disposing of her body.

Starting point is 00:26:53 Carl's son was left with his mother for the weekend while they cleaned and painted the basement. Carl's niece visited a short time later. She said she saw dried blood by the back door entrance of the house and that Samantha was visibly upset. A couple said that Phoenix was back with her father. Carl's niece didn't stay for long. She knew there was something wrong, but she wasn't sure what it was. Carl's sons were returned to their mother in July of 2005.

Starting point is 00:27:17 During their time with her father, the boys contacted their mother multiple times about how they did not have any food in the home. Carl and Samantha weren't there when CFS visited. boys were being watched by someone with a warrant out for their arrest, so they were whisked back to their mother. The boys did not say anything about Phoenix, and the CFS workers didn't see any signs of another child in the home. Carl and Samantha moved back to Winnipeg with their child, where they had yet another baby

Starting point is 00:27:43 in December. They listed Phoenix as a dependent on legal documents and received benefits for her. Whatever they were asked about her by acquaintances, they said she was with her father. These acquaintances did not know Steve, so they didn't press any further. In February of 2005, Carl's younger son visited the couple in Winnipeg. He said he saw his father hit his infant child's hand with a screwdriver. That finally urged him to tell his older brother about Phoenix, who then told their mother. Carl's ex and sons alerted the police about Phoenix's death in early March.

Starting point is 00:28:20 Instead of coming clean, Samantha borrowed a friend's young dog. and pretended that she was Phoenix. Thankfully, the officers weren't fooled. Samantha and Carl were arrested and questioned. They both broke down during their interrogations and tried to shift the blame on one another. Eventually, Carl led police officers to where they hid Phoenix's body.

Starting point is 00:28:42 They had buried her in Fisher River's landfill, where she remained for seven months. When forensic experts examined her, they likened her injuries to those from severe car crash. And where in there is Phoenix Inclare? Right this way. Okay. And exactly where in there.

Starting point is 00:29:03 Okay. How far in the ground? How far in the ground will she be? Approximately about eight inches? Okay. The soil and top. Yeah. Look right here. About that deep.

Starting point is 00:29:23 Okay. And what you used, by the way? I use a spade. Okay. And what else? That's it. Okay. Is there anything else you want to say while we're here? This is your time.

Starting point is 00:29:34 Yeah. I've done this for the Phoenix to recover her body. Okay. Because it deserves a proper burial. I've done from my boys as well as myself. I see my mind. All right. Okay.

Starting point is 00:29:53 Anything else you want to say? I'm sorry. Yeah. I'll cause you guys because I know you're, it's your job. You shouldn't be out here and Phoenix should be out. Wow. We'll get her out. Okay.

Starting point is 00:30:07 I think that's about it. Just how will we find her in there? How will she be? He will be faced up. The plastic is, I dropped her in plastic with a yellow rain jacket. the head being covered with the head part and the rest of her body. Okay. Is there any markings on the ground, indicators?

Starting point is 00:30:36 No indicators because we just put it right here. I believe it's right here. I'm 100% sure now because I know. You're 100%? Yes. Because that's, it's all water. What? Wes, which way, do you know, or can you recall which way her head or her feet would be pointing?

Starting point is 00:30:56 Her head here, her head's here, and then down. Where are her feet? Her feet is here, and the head's right here. And is there anything else in there with her at all? Just the dirt that will be covered with. Okay. Like I said, the, the grave was about this wide because she deserves a very small girl. So it's about this wide.

Starting point is 00:31:26 I'm going to find her. years later in December of 2008, Carl and Samantha were both convicted of first-degree murder. They were given life sentences with parole eligibility after 25 years. As of 2022, Samantha has been allowed supervised trips outside of prison to visit family and an indigenous elder for spiritual development. Judge Edward N. Hughes, also known as Ted Hughes, was put in charge of the public inquiry examining and relaying Phoenix's murder. Judge Hughes spent roughly three months' worth of compiling this public inquiry. He listed over 50 goals for restructuring Canada's child welfare system. Judge Hughes said that it's up to the entire community to keep children out of harm's way and that a

Starting point is 00:32:10 single system cannot sustain that goal in the long term. He believed that a case is violent as Phoenix's stayed undetected for so long due to untrained and overburdened workers as well as a lack of resources. Among his recommendations for improvement, Judge Hughes listed a bachelor's degree in social work is a required prerequisite, a maximum of 20 cases per worker, openness between child care agencies, educating workers on generational poverty, and making amendments to the Social Work Profession Act. The entirety of this document is available for public viewing online. Phoenix Sinclair's murder is a tragedy, and even worse, it is a tragedy that could have been easily avoided had the institutions in place done what they were supposed to do.

Starting point is 00:32:53 This disorganized, untrained state of CFS did not come overnight. It was decades in the making. Now, most of those who watch our channel are in the U.S., so some of you might be unfamiliar that in Canada, up until the 1950s, all indigenous children were required to attend residential schools. The goal of the Canadian government at the time was to assimilate young First Nations children into Western culture. Many of these children were banned from speaking to their families.

Starting point is 00:33:20 These schools were hubbed for mistreatment of every kind imaginable towards these children. An unknown number of kids died while attending residential schools. The survivors of these schools came out traumatized, and unfortunately this was during a time when mental health awareness was far worse than it currently is now. The residential school system was phased out in the 1950s. The 60s scoop, as coined by author Patrick Johnson in 1983, occurred between the 1950s and the 1980s when social workers forcibly took children from their families and made them wards of the system. These untrained social workers saw anything short of a middle-class, white picket fence lifestyle,

Starting point is 00:33:59 as unacceptable living conditions for a child. They were not expected to understand indigenous cultures or how generational poverty does not inherently mean that children are being neglected or mistreated. The effects of residential schools in the 60s scoop are still seen to this day. and indigenous children still make up a large portion of Canada's child welfare system. Steve Sinclair and Samantha Camatch are both indigenous. They're both raised within the child welfare system. Steve's mother was a survivor of a residential school, which gave him an inherent distress for government entities.

Starting point is 00:34:32 This is in no way for giving either of them, but simply giving the background context that many of those watching could be unfamiliar with. If prevention is the ultimate goal, it is important to understand the landscape in which Phoenix's murder took place. Judge Hughes has said that these factors were direct root causes that led to Phoenix Sinclair's murder. Anatoba's Social Work Profession Act was made into law in 2009. It made certification a hard requirement for those working in child welfare programs. Judge Hughes's recommended amendments that we mentioned earlier were added officially in 2014.

Starting point is 00:35:05 These are all fair and founded criticisms of a failed system, but it's still important to recognize the faults of neglectful and outwardly violent adults. Phoenix looked to these grownups in her life to keep her safe, and they all deserted her when she needed them the most. If not for her stepbrother's confession, she may very well still be buried in a shallow grave. It's sad how Phoenix has become a symbol of the Canadian government's failure to protect vulnerable children. Even while researching this case, it's hard to find any information about Phoenix separate from her death. All we have about Phoenix herself is from Steve's testimonies in victim-in-lawful. impact statements, which read, she loved to play guitar, read, draw, watch movies, among other things. Phoenix is not a symbol. She was a guiltless, innocent child who deserved more than the poor hand

Starting point is 00:35:58 that was dealt to her. She deserves to stand with the rest of us today. But because of mistreatment, neglect, and outright incompetence, her life was taken much too soon. If given a chance to live and grow in a safe, loving environment, Phoenix Sinclair would be to be to be to be. 24 years old. Her sister Echo would be 23. Maybe they would have sought out higher education, started a family of their own, or gotten involved in their local communities. If there is any hope to come out of this tragedy, it's that everyone around the world can look at Phoenix, Victoria, Hope, Sinclair, and promise in her memory to never let something so terrible and preventable happen again. In his inquiry, Judge Ted Hughes wrote the following. To truly honor Phoenix, we need to

Starting point is 00:36:45 provide all of Manitoba's children with a good start in life and offer to the most vulnerable and escape from the cycle of poverty and vulnerability. My hope is that the heart-wrenching evidence I heard will serve as a catalyst to ensure that the recommendations that emerge from this report are wholeheartedly embraced and implemented. The public interests that this inquiry has received encourages me in the belief that achievement of the better protection of all Manitoba's children and especially the most vulnerable be the true legacy of Phoenix Sinclair.

The Misery Machine - The Case of Phoenix Sinclair

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