Whitehorse woman missing since 2022 presumed dead after Yukon Supreme Court decision

A Whitehorse woman who went missing three years ago is officially presumed dead.

Deanna Bailey, 45, was reported missing on Jan. 20, 2022. Yukon RCMP's initial ground and aerial search was widely publicized, but unsuccessful. 

Bailey's common-law spouse, Robert Pharand, filed a petition to the Yukon Supreme Court last year, asking for an official declaration of death. Chief Justice Suzanne Duncan approved the application.

In her decision, Duncan says no foul play is suspected in Bailey's death, and she is presumed to have died on the day she went missing.

According to court documents, Bailey's car was found in the parking lot near the Millenium Trail and Yukon River in Whitehorse on Jan. 20, 2022. 

Bailey had left several notes around the home she shared with Pharand, including a handwritten will, a list of her passwords, a "personal note about her feelings for [Pharand]" and a note expressing her love of water and swimming, the decision read. 

Several of Bailey's art pieces were labelled with the names of friends. Duncan's decision said Bailey periodically suffered from depression and seasonal affective disorder.

Duncan said the application hearing was "heartbreaking" and offered condolences to Bailey's partner, family and friends in her decision.

Bailey remembered

Bailey was an active member of the Yukon arts community. When she went missing, Yukon Search and Rescue was buoyed by volunteers, RCMP said at the time.

Bailey was a member of Yukon Artists at Work who completed residencies in France, Iceland and Yukon's Tombstone Territorial Park. Her catalogue of paintings used clay to create multi-dimensional, fantastical depictions of nature.

Pharand, who was Bailey's common-law partner of more than a decade, was working at a mining camp near Pelly Crossing, Yukon, when she went missing. In an interview with CBC News, he described Bailey as an expert in the outdoors, a former competitive swimmer and a lover of music.

Bailey was also an avid rock collector, Pharand said. Her pieces would often include hyper-realistic portrayals of rocks with one real pebble hidden among them. Bailey also loved Whitehorse's Miles Canyon and making art there.

Pharand invites anyone who knew Bailey to throw a rock into Miles Canyon in her memory.

"That would be a lovely thing," he said.

If you or someone you know is struggling, here's where to get help:

• In Yukon, call the Reach Out Support Line 24/7 at 1-844-533-3030.

• Suicide Crisis Helpline 24/7 by phone or text 24/7, toll free by dialing or texting 9-8-8. 

• Hope For Wellness Helpline: 1-855-242-3310 (phone, available in Inuktitut, Cree and Ojibway upon request).

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 (phone), live chat counselling on the website.

• Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre.

This guide from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health outlines how to talk about suicide with someone you're worried about.