CANADA Canada - Jack, 4 & Lilly Sullivan, 6, Vulnerable, wandered from home 10am, Gairloch Rd, Landsdowne Station, Pictou County, NS, 2 May 2025 #6

[Lucy6226]

In a poll what would people tick .

Kids wandered off □
Homicide direct or indirect □
Handover □
Abduction □
Other □ and what is your theory

No.2 for me.

 

[missourimom2]

No we don’t but MBM did mention they were behind other children in school. So it appears there was cause for concern and a situation that required attention but the children had not been taken to be officially diagnosed by medical experts. Why that would be could be perceived as a lack of parental concern for the well-being of the child,

I would think an official diagnosis is required before a school is granted funding to hire additional aids to support a child’s learning journey. Prior to that teachers usually don't have time to devote a lot of personal attention to students with special needs which can cause disruptions in the classroom.
JMO

I find it odd that they were both behind other kids, both were autistic, etc. While there are families with multiple kids who are autistic, they aren’t usually just alike as how it is coming off. My children are all very different from each other. Even the dyslexic kids vary a lot in their degree and even type of dyslexia.

 

[Slebby]

No we don’t but MBM did mention they were behind other children in school. So it appears there was cause for concern and a situation that required attention but the children had not been taken to be officially diagnosed by medical experts. Why that would be could be perceived as a lack of parental concern for the well-being of the child,

I would think an official diagnosis is required before a school is granted funding to hire additional aids to support a child’s learning journey. Prior to that teachers usually don't have time to devote a lot of personal attention to students with special needs which can cause disruptions in the classroom.
JMO

There are lots of reasons for children to be behind their peers in school, not just autism. Like maturity, and socialization.
I also wonder, how far behind could a 4 year old be, in preschool? Was he failing to color inside the lines? Learning his alphabet too slow?
I also wonder at both children receiving the same label of autism. Yes, there can be a genetic aspect to autism. As a parent, when my kids were small, I would not have quickly jumped to a blanket label for any challenges they may have had in school. So I would like if there was some corroboration from a teacher, even to say, yes, there may have been traits of autism exhibited that needed exploring.
IMO

 

[Slebby]

I find it odd that they were both behind other kids, both were autistic, etc. While there are families with multiple kids who are autistic, they aren’t usually just alike as how it is coming off. My children are all very different from each other. Even the dyslexic kids vary a lot in their degree and even type of dyslexia.

I was composing as you were posting, I agree!

 

[aggiekel2005]

I find it odd that they were both behind other kids, both were autistic, etc. While there are families with multiple kids who are autistic, they aren’t usually just alike as how it is coming off. My children are all very different from each other. Even the dyslexic kids vary a lot in their degree and even type of dyslexia.

I can agree with this. I have two kids- both ADHD, both with learning disabilities... but the way they show up for each kid is wildly different. In fact, my youngest was diagnosed first because her symptoms and struggles were much more prevalent. It wasn't until she was diagnosed that we started learning more about realizing our oldest may also have similar diagnoses.

My kids could dress themselves around 2 or 3. Of course, I have girls who loved playing "dress up" and changing outfits. I'd also say that at this age, when dressing themselves, it was a matter of putting on whatever they could access/what was easy/what they wanted vs. pairing things together appropriately, especially for the weather.

 

[DustysMom]

In a poll what would people tick .

Kids wandered off □
Homicide direct or indirect □
Handover □
Abduction □
Other □ and what is your theory

Homicide, unfortunately

 

[Occam's Zebra]

My opinion on the illness is unless there was signs of illness in school on Tuesday like lilly seemingly not herself, scratchy throat or temperature I personally don't believe it . I think it was a case of kids off Wednesday due to training day for teachers and parents just being lazy or something just kept them off gor rest of week . Happens all the time and would be a common occurrence of absenteeism in schools after a Bank Holiday or some other reason for school closure .

It's far more work IMHO to keep 2 young kids at home then it is to send them to school.

 

[Slebby]

It's far more work IMHO to keep 2 young kids at home then it is to send them to school.

I agree, for most people, this could be true. But for MBM and DM, getting out of bed at a normal hour seems a challenge. IMHO, they may have found it easier to lay in bed, leave the kids to their own devices, possibly let them help themselves to easily accessible snacks, watch tv or videos, etc. Doing nothing can be a lot easier than getting kids up, dressed, fed, washed, brushed and out to the bus stop in time. For some, these efforts might feel insurmountable.
IMO

 

[MistyWaters]

I can agree with this. I have two kids- both ADHD, both with learning disabilities... but the way they show up for each kid is wildly different. In fact, my youngest was diagnosed first because her symptoms and struggles were much more prevalent. It wasn't until she was diagnosed that we started learning more about realizing our oldest may also have similar diagnoses.

My kids could dress themselves around 2 or 3. Of course, I have girls who loved playing "dress up" and changing outfits. I'd also say that at this age, when dressing themselves, it was a matter of putting on whatever they could access/what was easy/what they wanted vs. pairing things together appropriately, especially for the weather.

Yes there is no valid excuse to guess at or ignore behavioural issues, in fact there is a phone link to Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) in Pictou area. In Canada health care is free.

Community child and adolescent clinics​

Nova Scotia Health Authority's community child and adolescent clinics offer diagnostic assessment and treatment for children with ASD and concurrant mental health disorders, including significant behavioural disorders. These multidisciplinary teams work to meet the functional and mental health needs of children and adolescents and their families.

 

[missourimom2]

It's far more work IMHO to keep 2 young kids at home then it is to send them to school.

One thing I would like to mention, ever since everything that happened five years ago, I think many parents, including myself, are more apt to keep their kids home for a cough. People are more sensitive to coughs and other symptoms now and schools have encouraged parents not to send sick children to school just in case. As a parents, you feel guilty if your child coughs in public. It was not like this when I was in school; lots of coughing going on and not much worry.

 

[iveyguy]

I

Kids wandered off □
Homicide direct or indirect □
Handover □
Abduction □
Other □ and what is your theory

#2 - Indirect homicide; "Indirect" because I believe that if DM or MBM were directly involved, they would have been arrested by now. I've held this theory for a while now... but it's just IMO, and admittedly it's just one of many potential scenarios:

1) The children were removed from the property by someone familiar to them, either by car or ATV. Crimes of opportunity or crimes of malice were committed.

2) DM & MBM both initially treated it as a disappearance, but within 24 hours, MBM realized or figured out that something sinister had happened, committed by someone familiar to DM. Accusations were made, she left, and hasn't spoken since.

3) DM was first in line to declare his innocence. He doesn't know exactly what happened, and isn't about to cast suspicion on his family & associates. But he wasn't involved and has made this clear, repeatedly.

4) LE has very little evidence. There's no evidence against the two primary suspects (DM & MBM). There's a handful of other suspects, but no one knows anything, except for that one person, and they are remaining extremely tight-lipped given the severity of their crimes.

 

[TwoBlueJays]

Someone upthread mentioned if one child was sick with a cough, why were searchers not hearing her?
That's what puzzles me with the timeline.
Little children are noisy. Little children who are lost in the woods and scared would be calling out for their mother or father. You may not see them in dense brush, but you would hear a screaming or crying frightened toddler.
So if the children walked into the woods, and potentially walked a short distance from home or even in circles, as humans tend to walk when lost, why did the parents not hear them when they called for them? It's a quiet rural setting. I imagine you could stand on the back step of the trailer and shout their names and still hear the kids screaming for mama.
And if DM really did spring into action and search everywhere in the immediate area, it's odd that he wouldn't hear them if he called for them.
I tend to look at logistics. And fitting the comments from DM into a logical framework, either the kids wandered at a much earlier time than he says, even up to the evening before, or they aren't out there. And I do realize that scared kids may stay silent, but a 4 year old is going to melt down and start crying. You assume that loud wailing would have echoed in the woods up to a point from the house, or when searchers were calling for them.
So I personally do not believe they wandered off.
Moo

 

[missourimom2]

MOO:
If one or both parents are innocent, there still could have been lies to cover neglectful behavior so they don’t look like bad parents. Like, maybe they didn’t actually hear them in the morning and that’s why their stories were different from each other. ?

 

[thelesis]

All theories are limited by the minimal information which as been released including the nature of the connection between MBM and the First Nations band that she was a member of. ie Was she raised there?

This is a good point. IIRC, it was the band that came out and said the kids were members via their mother, not from MBM herself. You can be a member of a band and not be involved with it.

I have a friend who went through her family history and found a relative that qualified her for Metis citizenship, which she used to get funding for university. She doesn't identify as Metis or have a link to the culture, she did it for the $$$.

If you decide to live off reserve you can live your whole life without a link to your ancestry. It's not 100 years ago where you needed a pass from the Indian Agent to leave the reserve.

 

[MistyWaters]

This is a good point. IIRC, it was the band that came out and said the kids were members via their mother, not from MBM herself. You can be a member of a band and not be involved with it.

I have a friend who went through her family history and found a relative that qualified her for Metis citizenship, which she used to get funding for university. She doesn't identify as Metis or have a link to the culture, she did it for the $$$.

If you decide to live off reserve you can live your whole life without a link to your ancestry. It's not 100 years ago where you needed a pass from the Indian Agent to leave the reserve.

True, it’s easy to imagine MBM as somewhat isolated living with DM, in the shadows of his mother and possibly his brother living in the same yard. But she might’ve had grandparents, multiple aunts and uncles, plus dozens of siblings and half-siblings living on or off the reserve who she kept in close contact with, while her direct ties to it could’ve been merely financial in nature.

 

[ApartoftheNarrative]

My 4 year old daughter dresses herself every morning. I don’t think my boys were at that age.

This. I work with kids. Usually girls around 3-4 are able to dress themselves. It seems to take a little longer for some boys. However I have seen boys around 3-4 able to dress themselves. I’m unsure as to how capable little Jack is as this is a very kid by kid thing.

 

[Gut_feeling]

It's far more work IMHO to keep 2 young kids at home then it is to send them to school.

I agree, however, it is harder to hide signs of abuse when you send them to school. Abusive parents keep their kids home to let bruises fade, scratches heal, etc.

 

[Slebby]

I agree, however, it is harder to hide signs of abuse when you send them to school. Abusive parents keep their kids home to let bruises fade, scratches heal, etc.

Wow. I hadn’t even thought of that.

 

[MistyWaters]

It's far more work IMHO to keep 2 young kids at home then it is to send them to school.

Not necessarily, if the kids are unwilling to be ‘sent off’. Many parents prefer to avoid temper tantrums.

 

[Daisyeve]

This. I work with kids. Usually girls around 3-4 are able to dress themselves. It seems to take a little longer for some boys. However I have seen boys around 3-4 able to dress themselves. I’m unsure as to how capable little Jack is as this is a very kid by kid thing.

The bus driver said Jack was able to take his shoe off and throw it if he needed attention. I wonder where he learned that from?