Inside a chain of group homes in horrifying condition

Plus, a teen's landmark win against YCDSB, and kids being sent to ICUs far from home [Get access now!]( [The Star] First Up [By Manuela Vega] By Manuela Vega Good morning. Here’s the latest on the troubling conditions in a chain of unlicensed group homes, a landmark case against York Catholic school board and why some GTA hospitals are sending children as far away as Ottawa. DON’T MISS Southwestern Public Health star investigation [It was supposed to be a safe, affordable home for Ontarians with nowhere else to go — instead it was horrifying ]( The residents at Walnut Manor hadn’t been sick enough for the hospital or rehab, but they weren’t healthy enough to live alone. So 26 adults, some with complex needs and disabilities, paid to live in the building — a building that inspectors later found to have soiled mattresses and furniture, rotting garbage, mould, rodents, a broken water heater and other serious issues. Residents and families say they live in squalor. Diana Zlomislic reports on the sordid conditions of a facility that had been advertised as affordable living with the shortest wait-lists in the industry. [How could it get to this?]( - More: Walnut Manor, which was closed last summer, was part of a growing chain of for-profit “Supportive Living” facilities run by Hamilton entrepreneur Vishal Chityal. The unlicensed facilities have become increasingly popular places to place marginalized people. - Go deeper: The Ontario Disability Support Program, which Chityal said the majority of his residents receive, pays landlords directly. For each resident, Chityal collects anywhere from $745 to $1,095 monthly. - Watch for: Niagara-Centre MPPs have tried to pass a private members’ bill that would require such homes to be provincially licensed and subject to proactive inspections, but their proposed bills have failed to get past second reading three times. One MPP plans to reintroduce the bill this fall. Toronto Star File Photo courts [A teen won a landmark case against York Catholic school board]( Dasha Kandaharian, now 17 and a first-year university student, was in Grade 12 when she launched a lawsuit against the YCDSB over the board’s decision to bar her from running for student trustee when she was in Grade 10 because she’s Orthodox Christian, not Catholic, Alessia Passafiume reports. Now, Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice has ruled that the board’s policy violated Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. [Here’s more on the ruling and what it could mean for others](. - By the numbers: According to the decision, there are about 5,000 non-Catholic students enrolled with the YCDSB. “The 5,000 students that are not Catholic constitute a significant group that are not treated as complete members of the student body or the school community,” the decision reads. - Go deeper: Students from neighbouring Catholic school boards served as witnesses, documenting their own struggles trying to run for student trustee as non-Catholics. - Word from the school board: The chair of the YCDSB said the board “is very disappointed by the ruling from the Ontario Superior Court.” File Photo health care [Ontario pediatric hospitals are under strain and some are transferring kids far from home]( With an influx of children this fall — more of whom are arriving sicker than usual — pediatric hospitals are facing record-long emergency room wait times and overcrowded inpatient units. As a result, critically ill children from the GTA and Hamilton are being sent as far away as Ottawa for ICU care. [Megan Ogilvie reports on the “extremely concerning” practice that is becoming increasingly common amid a spike in kids with respiratory infections and other viral illnesses](. - More: The rising need for care has at least one hospital reporting ER wait times of more than 30 hours and others cancelling surgeries. [Here’s a closer look at how delayed procedures risk the long-term health of children](. - Watch for: Hospitals are rushing to find short-term solutions, including opening more inpatient beds and adding staff to emergency departments, but leaders worry about how they will cope in the fall and winter when they typically see a surge of patients with viral infections. Ontario’s chief medical officer of health has also warned of “a quite complex and difficult winter” as the province sees more COVID-19 cases. WHAT ELSE Here’s why the OPP says the [Emergencies Act wasn’t needed to deal with the Convoy occupation](. Period poverty is a crisis for Indigenous youth — [here’s how it puts their mental and physical health at risk](. A deadly city street has become an election issue in this Toronto neighbourhood. [Here’s what it could mean for a progressive city councillor](. Four boys, three aged 14, have been charged in a string of armed carjackings and robberies. [Here’s what Toronto police are saying](. South Simcoe officers were killed before drawing their weapons and [what else we know about the night they died](. Who is Innisfil shooter Chris Doncaster? [Here’s what we know and what we don’t](. NDP’s Rachel Notley is [calling out Alberta Premier Danielle Smith over her vaccine “discrimination” comments](. “If we cared, we could do better.” [Why the scramble for city swimming lessons is worse than ever](. Universities are saying Patrick Brown’s [campaign flyer shouldn’t have their logos on it](. An ex-city court clerk will spend [two years in jail for this ticket-fixing scheme](. This poll revealed views on bike lanes, transit and climate action in the 905. [The results may surprise you](. “I just killed my mom.” [A Mississauga man is sentenced to life for killing his mom, 88, over her will](. POV Steve Russell/The Star [Toronto’s first mayoral debate featured a defensive Tory, testy words — and a surprising winner.]( CLOSE-UP Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images WASHINGTON, D.C.: Activists shut down traffic in front of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Thursday to block people from entering annual meetings. Protestors demanded the organizations cancel the financial debt of the Global South in order to “repay their ecological debt and their climate debt to the Global South.” Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_149253). Ashley will see you back here tomorrow. Get unlimited access to all articles Only $0.50/week for a limited time [Subscribe Now!]( If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON M5E 1E6. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](