One year after 18-year-old Chantelle Williams died while in provincial care, her family says they still do not know what happened.
A passerby found the Indigenous teen unresponsive on a Port Alberni street on Jan. 28, 2025, just blocks from the group home where she was living. She later died in hospital.
At the time, Williams was in the guardianship care of Usma Nuu-chah-nulth Family and Child Services, an Indigenous agency providing child protection services through a delegation agreement with the province. The group home where she was staying was managed by Inside Out Care Corporation.
The B.C. Coroners Service confirms the investigation into her death is ongoing.
Williams’ family previously said they believe she froze to death as temperatures in Port Alberni dropped with wind chill that night, but no official cause has been released.
Independent MLA Amelia Boultbee released a statement from Williams’ aunt, Shannon Nookemus, on the one-year anniversary of her death. Nookemus said the family is calling for a thorough investigation into the group home where she was living.
“We seek transparency, answers, and closure, and hope for the home’s policies and practices to be reviewed to prevent future tragedies,” she said.
Boultbee said she has been closely monitoring the case and that the family still does not have answers about Williams’ cause of death or the progress of the investigation.
The Ministry of Children and Family Development said in a statement that privacy provisions restrict sharing information publicly about children and families it works with and it could not comment on any specific situations.
The ministry said a review is always undertaken when a child or youth dies while in care, and it will develop an action plan to improve practice if problems are identified.
It said the ministry and the Indigenous agency always notify the child’s family or First Nation immediately following a death and offer support.
“This was an unimaginable tragedy, and my thoughts and sympathies are with the youth, their family and the community. There are no words to describe what this family has gone through over the past year,” said a statement from Minister Jodie Wickens’ office.
Boultbee said Williams’ case and other deaths of children and youth in care need to be treated with more urgency.
“We need to know what happened to make sure that this isn’t a problem that’s occurring elsewhere,” she said.
Boultbee plans to introduce a private member’s bill this spring that would enforce timelines for such investigations and establish minimum standards for communication with families.
She said the fact that Williams was able to leave her group home the night she died shows an “unacceptable level of care,” and goes beyond one incident.
“This happens with far too much frequency here in British Columbia,” she said.
In a recent report, the office of B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth, Jennifer Charlesworth, said in 2024-25 it received reports of deaths of children and youth who were in care or receiving services, and more than 3,000 reports of critical injuries. Charlesworth said her office has reviewed Williams’ case and staff travelled to Port Alberni in April to meet with family members and First Nation representatives.
Charlesworth said her office usually waits a year for the coroner’s report and other reviews to conclude before launching a full investigation into a death.
“If we think we can add value to bring about change or if no one has uncovered some of the things that we think are really important for the family and community and service delivery system to know, then we would undertake an investigation,” she said.
She said Williams’ case is closely tied to issues her office is currently focused on, including a review of group homes expected to be released in May.
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