Delonna Victoria Sullivan

 

 

 

 

 

 

Four months after Delonna Sullivan was brought home, her mother Jamie Sullivan had a routine argument with her roommate’s 16 year old daughter, and told her to take a walk. The girl hiked eight kilometers to town and moved in with a friend’s family. After a few weeks, the friend’s parents called Human Services and asked for money to pay the girl’s keep. The call triggered a visit from child welfare workers.

 

On April 5, 2011 two social workers from Leduc along with a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer arrived at Sullivan’s house with an apprehension order for the children of Sullivan’s roommate. Delonna was also taken from the house by the social workers and RCMP, but without the legally required apprehension order. An affidavit signed by a social worker two days later claimed that the child needed to be removed because “the infant has been subjected to disharmony in the home and the child is left with inexperienced babysitters” and her mother “appears to suffer from an alcohol addiction.”

 

Delonna died April 11 in an Edmonton hospital, six days after she was taken and put in foster care.

On a supervised visit, Sullivan noted her baby had diarrhea and red marks on her face and was likely dehydrated. She asked that

Delonna be taken to hospital, but the foster caregiver decided to wait a few days to assess the symptoms.

Sullivan said she was not informed her baby was in hospital. She said she got a call about six hours after Delonna died. The medical examiner ruled that Delonna had been heavily dosed with Tylenol, and subjected to unsafe sleeping conditions.

 

The family continues to seek justice for the loss of Delonna to this day.