CALGARY – The tragic death of a 15-year-old Calgary boy last year has sparked calls for an inquiry.
Alexa Radita died from a bacterial infection which he contracted due to complications from neglect and starvation. He suffered from Type 1 diabetes.
His parents were arrested on Tuesday, and have both been charged with first-degree murder.
Court documents show Alex Radita was first diagnosed with diabetes while living in B.C. and had been removed from his parents’ home by Child Welfare officials because his parents allegedly failed to treat him.
Despite a social worker’s concerns, a judge ruled it was safe to return Alex, who was five-years-old at the time, to his parents.
The family eventually moved to Alberta.
The union for social workers in B.C. tells Global News the Radita’s file had been closed prior to the family leaving the province, which absolved B.C. government of the responsibility to tell any other jurisdictions.
Officials in Alberta confirm they were never made aware of a need to get involved and follow up on the boy’s care.
“The question is, what happens when there is a closed file?” asks Human Services minister Manmeet Bhullar. “I would say we should always operate on the side of caution. If a file is closed within a number of months or maybe within a year, I think people should be notified.”
Officials in B.C. are also hoping to help determine what changes can be made to prevent this from ever happening again.
“We absolutely have to determine how those kinds of things happen,” says B.C. Premier Christy Clark. “We have to make sure that we’re connecting not only within our province between ministries, but that we’re connecting between governments as well.”
It’s possible an inquiry may be launched into the teen’s death after the case has made its way through the criminal court.
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