Foster Mother Decribes 'Uncontrollable Venting'

By 250 News

Prince George, B.C. –  Patricia Keene, the  foster mother for Savannah Hall,  will continue her testimony today at the inquest into the death of the three year old.

Yesterday, she told the jury how the child, just one year old at the time,  had  been  delivered to her home by the child’s previous foster mother.  Savannah’s previous foster home was  undergoing a “protocol” although  it wasn’t stated  if that  investigation was  related  to  concerns about  allegations of  abuse, or concerns over quality of care.

Keene says Savannah was small, more like a 6-8 month old. She couldn’t crawl, couldn’t walk and would fall over when sitting up.  She  was “delayed” said Keene and says when Savannah arrived at her home, the little girl had a severe case of  impetigo (infectious skin problem which produces  yellow crusty sores) “Her fingers and toes were infected and swollen, her hands and feet were terrible,  I think she lost a couple of  fingernails  and toe nails because of this infection.”

Keene said Savannah appeared to be what is referred to as a “bucket baby” a child that has spent so much time in a car seat that it has lost the hair on the back of its head and in some cases the back of the child’s head  is flat.  The previous foster mother had told Pat Keene that when Savannah cried, (which was a lot) she would “spritz” her in the face.  Keene says she didn’t press the matter to find out what Savannah had been “spritzed” with.

Savannah , testified Keene,  would  scream out as if she had been hit, and  would cry, but not shed tears. When Savannah was able to crawl, then walk, she would throw herself around.  “I didn’t want to refer to these as tantrums, more as an episode.  She would thrash around and nothing, not a child, not an animal, not a toy was safe, she would kick, hit and throw things.  Then, there was a  calm, like a calm after a storm.”  She said she talked with one support worker who suggested this might be a grand mal seizure.  She says an EEG was taken, but she was not given the results of that test.

During the "episodes" Keene said  she  would try to hold Savannah, "If she would let me touch her, she would kick, she would hit, she would bite.  It was like you had to watch her work her way through it."  Keene says  she initially called the episodes, "uncontrollable venting."

Keene said  although  she and the Child Development Centre tried to  find  some common “trigger” the only thing  they could come up with was if Savannah  had a day at CDC where she hadn’t been able to follow instructions,  Patricia Keene could expect Savannah would have a rough evening, and a rough night in bed.

Patricia Keene will continue her testimony today as lawyers begin their cross examination.

Savannah Hall died in January of 2001, two days after being rushed to Prince George Regional Hospital when her foster parents found her unresponsive in her crib.  Savannah  died of swelling in the brain, but the cause of that swelling has yet to be determined.

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