A 27-year-old British Columbia man is suing the provincial government after he was banned for life from receiving disability assistance for defrauding the system out of $250.
Justin Mitchell of Vancouver has been diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, has struggled with drug and alcohol addiction since he was a young teenager and has received disability assistance throughout his adult life.
He pleaded guilty last year to fraud after submitting a fake confirmation-of-employment letter to receive an extra $250, and is now banned from receiving provincial government assistance for life.
Mitchell appealed but the Ministry of Social Development told him provincial legislation does not provide any discretion when someone is convicted of defrauding the disability assistance program.
Mitchell is asking the B.C. Supreme Court to strike down sections of a provincial law that outlines the lifetime ban and overturn a decision by an appeal tribunal that upheld the ban in his case.
The provincial government has not yet filed a statement of defence, and a spokesperson for the Ministry of Social Development was not immediately available for comment.
