How Could You? Hall of Shame-Canada-Jacob Collins case-Adult Death

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Ontario, Canada, residential care resident, Jacob Collins died by suicide in February 2020 at approximately 23 years old.

Jacob Collins mother, Virginia, “turned to the child protection system when Jacob began to develop complex mental health challenges and exhibiting high-risk behaviours. But instead of help, a lawyer representing the family says she was presented with papers to sign her son into out-of-province care.”

“Jacob Collins was sent to Broken Arrow Residential Treatment Services (BARTS).

The company cropped up in several of the six death investigations at the centre of the public inquiry, and was named in the public-facing summary of systemic failings found in each case.

Despite the implications of its name, investigators Kenn Richard and Tara Petti said Broken Arrow was not an Indigenous facility, nor was it a treatment centre. It was a foster home, where kids were discouraged from speaking their native languages.

Broken Arrow — which rebranded as Kalon Services NL — has not responded to requests for comment from CBC News.”

“Hiscock said the investigation found Virginia Collins was given glowing updates during her son’s time at Broken Arrow. They said he was excelling, and highlighted his participation in soccer and cadets. What they didn’t tell her was that her son often tried to run away, but was returned each time.

“He had alarms on the doors and windows of his room and was treated as a prisoner,” Hiscock said.

Hiscock said the report found that Collins was underweight as a boy, but his food and diet were closely monitored. In one example, the investigation uncovered an incident report where Collins was disciplined for putting an extra spoonful of jam on his toast.

“[Virginia Collins] feels she was misled and bamboozled into repeatedly signing her son away under voluntary custody agreements,” Hiscock said. “She was told in great detail how well Jacob was doing in school, soccer and cadets. She was repeatedly told how happy he was and the opportunities he was getting. To her, it felt as if she was being told that she could not do for him what he needed.”

“Hiscock quoted from the investigative report, which said Collins was “a stranger in a strange land” while living in Ontario, disconnected from his family, language and culture.

Like the other children whose cases were investigated as part of the inquiry, Collins was eventually returned to Natuashish without a plan. He suffered, having spent so long away from home.

Hiscock said his mother worked hard, with little help from the child protection system, to get Collins through high school. Against all odds, he graduated in 2015.

His mental health struggles persisted, leading him from the child protection system to the criminal justice system. Jacob Collins was in pre-trial custody in February 2020, when he died by suicide alone in his cell.

More than six years later, Virginia Collins still struggles with her son’s death and the systemic failings that marked his adolescent years. Hiscock said it’s gotten easier since the inquiry began, now that she has some answers about what went wrong.”

She was told her son was thriving in care. Years after his death, an investigation found otherwise
[CBC 5/18/26 b y Ryan Cooke]

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