Forcing an 11-year-old autistic boy to be moved suddenly out of a private-care facility was "cruel," a fatality inquiry into his and his father's death was told Wednesday.

Bruce Uditsky, the head of the Alberta Association for Community Living, testified that yanking Jeremy Bostick out from the care centre and placing him into a lockdown facility would have been jarring and emotionally crushing for his family.

The transfer was particularly hard on Jeremy's father, Jeffrey Bostick, the hearing was told. Bostick killed both himself and his son shortly after touring the group home where Jeremy was transferred to.

The bodies of Jeffrey Bostick and his son Jeremy were found inside this house in northeast Edmonton on the afternoon of Sept. 27, 2009. CBC

Uditsky said the boy, who was prone to violent outbursts, had started settling in at a private-care facility that cost the government $32,000 a month.

At that point, the boy's family said the often out-of-control child had been improving, with help at the private facility from two dedicated workers.

'It's like he snapped'

But then the family learned Jeremy would have to go to a group home.

"They have maybe four or five months of stability, and then you get a letter basically out of the blue saying, 'We're terminating your funding. You'll have to move whether you want to or not,'" Uditsky said.

"I think that appeared, to me, to be cruel at the time — and unnecessary."

On Sept. 27, 2009, Bostick barricaded himself and Jeremy in a basement room, sealed the vents, and opened a cylinder of carbon monoxide until they died together.

'Often times it's not our children that are the biggest problem for us, it's getting the help for them that we know they need'—Karen Phillips, program director for Autism Society of Edmonton

Bostick's common-law wife, Deena Caputo, testified on Tuesday that Bostick shut down emotionally upon receiving news that his son would have to be moved to the group home. The father was $90,000 in debt for care payments, she said, adding that the family struggled to secure the services they needed for Jeremy.

"His eyes were glossed over. He wasn't human," Caputo said. "It's like he snapped."

Other parents close to desperation

The inquiry also heard about the problems of finding a specialist who could deal with Jeremy's violent outbursts.

Karen Phillips, program director for the Autism Society of Edmonton, said many parents go through similar frustrations and phoned her organization after the deaths to say they had been close to the same level of desperation.

"I can speak of that sense of desperation as a parent myself, and often times it's not our children that are the biggest problem for us, it's getting the help for them that we know they need," Phillips said.

"It wears you down over time as a parent and you can become less effective just because you're exhausted."

Phillips added that some parents donated money to help pay for funerals for Jeremy and his father.

The province will take the stand at the inquiry to explain its decisions in Jeremy's case.