B.C. woman already banned from midwifery is accused of killing baby

A British Columbia woman permanently banned from being a midwife in the province more than two decades ago has been charged with killing a baby while helping with a birth in 2023.

RCMP in Ladysmith, B.C., say Gloria Lemay, 77, has been arrested and charged with manslaughter for the death of a child who was unresponsive when delivered on Dec. 27, 2023, at a private home in the Vancouver Island town.

The baby died on Jan. 6, 2024, despite life-saving efforts from emergency workers.

Police say Lemay remained in custody Tuesday and is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.

“Investigators believe Ms. Lemay’s involvement in the birth process led to the child’s injuries and eventual death,” a news release from RCMP said.

No further details have been released and the case is now before the courts, police said.

Lemay did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

The B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives issued a public statement a year ago, saying Lemay was “the subject of a permanent court order in B.C., granted on Feb. 2, 2000, which permanently prohibited” her from midwifery.

The court’s order also prohibited Lemay from using the title of midwife or any other term that “would imply she was registered or associated with the college.”

“It’s extremely important that they do have the credentials to do these kind of services,” said RCMP Staff Sgt. Darrell Sandback during a news conference on Tuesday. “And that’s why there was an injunction against her, because she was providing the services where she wasn’t qualified to do that.

“And as a result, we are where we are today.”

The college said in the advisory last January that it appeared before a B.C. Supreme Court judge and obtained a search order of Lemay’s residence to “seize evidence related to her ongoing unauthorized practice of midwifery.”

In a written response on Tuesday, the college said it is aware of the arrest but cannot comment due to the criminal charge being a separate process from its own legal action against Lemay.

The advisory identified Lemay as a resident of Duncan, B.C., 30 kilometres south of Ladysmith on Vancouver Island, noting at the time that she “continues to hold herself out as a birth attendant” and may be offering midwifery services without permission to do so.

“Gloria Lemay is not, and has never been, a registrant of (the college) and is not entitled to practice midwifery in British Columbia,” the advisory said.

Lemay describes herself on her website as a childbirth advocate with the focus on areas of home birth, breastfeeding and “holistic education” of midwives among other fields.

Police say the investigation process into the 2023 case in Ladysmith involved both the provincial Ministry of Children and Family Development and the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives, as well as the coroners service.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2025.

Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press