Holman (July 21/03) - The tragic death of a 48-day-old baby found frozen outside a Holman home March 1, 2002 re-affirms the drastic affect of alcohol on Northern families, according to a report by NWT Chief Coroner Percy Kinney.

Percy Kinney

The three-page report classifies Joretta Inuktalik's death as accidental and states RCMP did not lay charges because there was no reasonable prospect for a conviction.

Kinney made three recommendations to the GNWT Department of Health and Social Services and the Inuvik Regional Health and Social Services Board.

He recommended a review of all alcohol and healthy living programs. "It was felt that more effort must be employed to battle the problem of alcohol abuse at the community level," he wrote.

Kinney also urged the department to provide complete and timely access to documents when requested by the coroner. Access was denied and only provided when seized by a warrant.

The report also recommended social services continue to monitor the family.

The child's parents took their baby to a house party. They kept in touch with their other young children, left at home, via walkie talkies.

The baby's father left the party before his wife. An hour later, he was found outside by a neighbour, shivering and disoriented. The man's parka was on the ground.

The neighbour helped him inside, but the parka was left behind.

When no one could find the baby, the neighbour remembered seeing the parka and found the baby in it, unresponsive.

The report does not state how long the child was left out in the cold. It is still unclear how the baby ended up on the ground.

"Because of his level of intoxication, he (the father) cannot remember the incident," states the report.

The infant died of exposure to the cold.

Records from the Inuvik Regional Health and Social Services department do not show any department history with this family before this incident.