Thursday March 21, 2013 (Vol. 38 No. 24)
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
A N D
S O U T H
S U R R E Y
w w w. p e a c e a r c h n e w s . c o m
Sharing the road: Following the difficult journey to diagnose their three-year-old son, a South Surrey family is working to raise funds and awareness for families living with autism. › see page 11
Highest court rules
Berner verdict upheld
Boaz Joseph photo
Finding relief after being treated for schizophrenia, and now able to fit in with his community, Clayton says he’s trying to help others on the street.
Mental health and the evolution of treatment
‘I don’t want to relive that nightmare’ Kevin Diakiw
O Black Press
f the 30 or so people bundled up outside the food van in North Surrey Monday night, it’s estimated the vast majority are dealing with some kind of mental-health issue. But almost none waiting for the nightly meal provided by NightShift Street Ministries admit it to a stranger. An exception is the 55-year-old man with the red ball cap and clear chestnut eyes standing back and watching over the crowd. Clayton is here for the food, but more than that, he’s here for the fellowship. The longtime sufferer of schizophrenia finds people in the lineup with similar conditions who accept him as is. He is stabilized now, but he remembers with frightening clarity the hallucinations that forced him into a life of isolation. At age 21, he began hearing voices of demons and angels, while feeling ghostly hands patting his body down. It wasn’t until Clayton was 42 that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and it’s only been the last few years that he has found relief with the right medications. It wasn’t easy getting here. He was afraid to seek help because of his tremendous fear of medical professionals. He was worried he’d be
heavily drugged or locked up in a psych ward. Asked to elaborate on what it was like for him living with his disease, he stops. “I don’t want to relive that nightmare,” urging an end to the line of questioning. Now that he’s stable and able to fit in with the community, he’s been trying to help others on the street. He thinks the province needs to spend more money and resources on outreach for those who are sick and counselling for people seeking help. It’s those things that helped Clayton ignore his demons and finally reach out to medical professionals for the help he needed. ••• In 1841, a 39-year-old teacher walked into a Massachusetts jail and offered to teach English. Her subsequent discovery there changed her life – and eventually changed the lives of thousands of others. When Dorothea Dix asked authorities why the mentally ill were housed alongside hardened criminals in unheated, unfurnished and foul-smelling cells she was told “the insane don’t feel heat or cold.” The war on the poor treatment of people with mental illness was on for the daughter of a Methodist preacher. › see page 4
EASTER WORD
IN THIS ISSUE OF
A Black Press special series examines the shattering effects of mental illness
Independent & Assisted Living for Seniors Seal of Approval
SCRAMBLE CONTEST
HARD to HELP
The Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed an appeal by Carol Berner, who was convicted in the 2008 drunk-driving death of toddler Alexa Middelaer. Berner, found guilty in July 2010 of two counts of dangerous driving causing death and bodily harm and two counts of impaired driving causing death and bodily harm, had applied to the country’s highest court to reverse the conviction. Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court of Canada announced Berner’s application was “dismissed without costs.” Last November, the B.C. Court of Appeal had dismissed Berner’s case there. Carol Berner Berner’s lawback in court yers argued the trial judge had erred in finding the destruction of Berner’s Oldsmobile by ICBC, before the defence could have it independently inspected for mechanical defects didn’t infringe on her right to make a full defence. They also argued Berner was found guilty despite a lack of evidence of impairment, and that she had not been advised of her right to counsel before her taperecorded statement was taken. On May 17, 2008, four-year-old Alexa – who attended preschool in Crescent Beach – was feeding a horse in Ladner, when Berner struck and killed her. Alexa’s aunt was also seriously injured. Berner was sentenced to 2½ years in prison and banned from driving for five years, but has so far served just days in custody. Today, the B.C. Court of Appeal is to hear Berner’s sentencing appeal. Visit www.peacearchnews.com
Largest Suites in Town 15366 - 17th Ave. White Rock 604-531-1160
www.unicarehomes.com
15340 - 17th Ave. White Rock 604-531-7470
Call for yo ur complimen tary lunch/dinn er