Almost $700,000 dollars of taxpayer money was paid by the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District to fight a human rights complaint filed by the parents of Carter Churchill.

Earlier this year, a Human Rights Commission ruled that Carter Churchill, a student at Beachy Cove Elementary, had been discriminated against by the school board for failing to provide reasonable accommodations for the child from 2016 to 2020.

Now, a recent Access to Information Request made by the family shows that the school district payed out $681,917.12 over five years to private law firm Stewart McKelvy to fight the case.

Carter’s father, Todd Churchill, calls the revelation “disgusting”.

“Almost three quarters of a million dollars to justify the discrimination of a five-year-old deaf child in a wheelchair. It’s disgusting when you think about this is what government is prioritizing over things like health care, hiring more teachers”.