SYDNEY, N.S. — A mother with a mild intellectual disability has lost custody of her 18-month-old son after a Nova Scotia judge found she does not have the capacity to parent the child.
Nova Scotia’s Community Services Department has been caring for the child since shortly after he was born and earlier this year sought a permanent care order because of protection concerns.
The 40-year-old mother opposed the order, arguing that she sincerely loves her son and that her mild intellectual disability is not a risk to his safety.
In a written decision, Justice Theresa Forgeron of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Sydney found the child would be at a “substantial risk of harm” in his mother’s care because she cannot adequately supervise and protect him.
Forgeron says a parental capacity assessment found the mother’s mild intellectual disability negatively impacts on her parenting abilities, and although she would meet her son’s basic needs, she would have difficulty solving the “novel” problems that will inevitably arise as the child matures.
The decision says the woman does not have the capacity to parent on her own, and would require a supportive network to safely parent the child, which she does not have.
It says the woman also lacks insight, noting the child’s father has an extensive child protection history involving substance abuse and violence and that the mother had previously refused to dissociate with him.