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No List, No Communication, No Emails, No ...

April 27, 2009 permalink

In his continuing effort to get a copy of the list of members of Ottawa CAS (which Ontario law required them to provide), John Dunn got in touch with the society's newly elected president Rick O'Connor. Mr O'Connor turned down Mr Dunn, and asked him to cease communication. Mr Dunn is now trying to get copies of emails that may reveal the plans to thwart his lawful request.

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For Immediate Release

April 23, 2009

In February of 2007, John Dunn, Executive Director of the Foster Care Council of Canada filed with the Children's Aid Society of Ottawa a request for a list of their regular voting members in an attempt to advocate through them for youth in care to become members of their agency since memberships are currently limited to people over the age of 18, eliminating the possibility for youth in care to become members and have any form of oversight of the agency which makes life altering decisions regarding their lives.

The Society refused to provide the list of it's members, which is a Provincial Offence under section 307 (5) of the Corporations Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. c-38.

Dunn, knowing the Society's Vice-President Rick O'Connor now elected President of the agency worked for the City of Ottawa contacted O'Connor at work to ask if he, as a Board member would appeal to the agency not to commit the Offence but instead to provide the list in accordance with the law.

Unfortunately, O'Connor refused to do so, and in fact requested that Dunn cease and desist from communicating with him at his place of employment, the City of Ottawa.

Having given O'Connor a chance to comply with the law, Dunn then requested via a Municipal Freedom of Information Request, copies of all communications between O'Connor and the Society which took place using the City's electronic resources.

The City denied Dunn access to the e-mail communications basing their decision on their assertion that personal e-mails of a City employee are not in the "care and control" of the City.

Dunn appealed the decision of the City to the Information and Privacy Commissioner's Office of Ontario, and the IPC's adjudicator, Catherine Corban, after considering the appeal and all submissions made by both parties, ordered the City to issue a new decision letter to Dunn basing their new decision letter on the fact that the City in fact does have both "care" and "control" of the personal e-mails.

The city has to act as if the request by Dunn was accepted by the city as of the date of the appeal's order, April 09, 2009 therefore giving them 30 days to respond to Dunn's request as if it were just made on April 09, 2009.

Two weeks later, on Thursday April 23, 2009, Dunn contacted the City to ask for the status of the request and was told the City is now considering it's options in relation to the request and will respond by May 9, 2009 with their new decision.

Dunn hopes the City does not try to create or find a different reason to deny him copies of the three e-mails (6 pages) at issue, however he has stated that he believes they will attempt to drag this out as long as possible based on new grounds.

Updates will be posted to the Council's News Blog located at http://www.fostercarenews.blogspot.com

Contact
John Dunn
Executive Director
The Foster Care Council of Canada
http://www.afterfostercare.ca

Source: email from John Dunn

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