GUILTY Australia - Chloe Valentine, 4, tortured to death, Ingle Farm, SA, 20 Jan 2012

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Coroner: Wasn't Ashlee's main difficulty her inability to put #ChloeValentine's needs before her own?

Stewart: We saw that as an extension of her mental health, anger, unresolved issues. I don't know, I'm not a psychologist. #ChloeValentine

Coroner: So many options for #ChloeValentine had been chewed up & spit out. Giving Chloe to grandma was never on the cards, was it?

Stewart: No, I do believe we considered it. #ChloeValentine

Stewart is being reminded of her evidence she spoke to Claire Horgan about whether it was time to get a removal order for #ChloeValentine.

Horgan has told the inquest she now feels she was not given "the full picture" of #ChloeValentine's situation by Stewart.

Stewart says she gave Horgan "an overview, at very least a summary" of #ChloeValentine's case. Says she gave her much more information.

Q: So why didn't Horgan record all that? Stewart: I don't know. Maybe she got caught up in the conversation. #ChloeValentine

Stewart: We weren't seeking an order from Horgan, just advice on whether we'd missed anything or were going in the wrong direction.

Stewart still believes it was not time to remove #ChloeValentine & the Youth Court would not have issued an order to do so.

Stewart says she genuinely believed Belinda Valentine was not an option for taking #ChloeValentine. Ms Valentine leaves gallery in tears.

Stewart: I genuinely, obviously wrongly, believed Belinda Valentine was not an option. #ChloeValentine

Ms Valentine was in court when Stewart said that. She left the court quietly, visibly upset by the evidence. #ChloeValentine

Q: Having a student conduct a case was inappropriate. Stewart: Not in normal Families SA practice, no. #ChloeValentine

Stewart: I'm quite torn about that because I think students need to learn. Coroner: Maybe they're learning the wrong things. #ChloeValentine

Q: If a Family Care Meeting had been held when #ChloeValentine was an infant, & drug abuse had been proven, you could have...

.. made a convincing argument for removal in Jan 2010. Stewart: Yes. #ChloeValentine

Lawyers for Victims of Crime Commission make application to call Belinda Valentine's husband to give evidence. Says he heard the phone call.

Coroner agrees; Steven Harvey is called to the stand. #ChloeValentine

Harvey: We went to Ashlee's house after she was assaulted. #ChloeValentine was very frightened, cowering by a door frame.

Harvey: Belinda picked her up, eventually she came to me & I held her. She was like a koala, put her head on my shoulder. #ChloeValentine

Harvey: Belinda told me she was ringing Families SA & Leanne Stewart. #ChloeValentine

Harvey: We wanted to take #ChloeValentine to our home. We felt she was in a violent situation. Phone was on loudspeaker.

Harvey: Stewart said "Well, I'm not going to give you permission to do that. I can't let you take #ChloeValentine from Ashlee."

Harvey: Ashlee heard this and laughed. Friend came to get Ashlee, she grabbed #ChloeValentine & they took off.

The #ChloeValentine inquest has adjourned until 2.15pm. @theTiser #newsADL

Sean Fewster
Senior Families SA social worker accused of lying to #ChloeValentine inquest: http://bit.ly/1FNaGIM via @theTiser #newsADL

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

The #ChloeValentine inquest has resumed with evidence from former Families SA supervisor Carolyn Curtis. @theTiser #newsADL

Curtis supervised Stewart & the Strong Families, Safe Babies team while they handled #ChloeValentine's case.

Curtis has previously admitted putting a positive spin on #ChloeValentine's case to justify closing it.

Curtis also claimed the Youth Court won't sign off on child removal - prompting the court to rebut her evidence last week. #ChloeValentine

The Youth Court said that, in 5yrs, Families SA hadn't failed in a single one of almost 2000 applications for child removal. #ChloeValentine

Curtis says that's true, but unpacks it: orders were granted but not exactly how a worker wanted, ie shorter times or no custody.

Q: That's not what you said. You said you failed. Curtis: I meant I failed to get what I was seeking. #ChloeValentine

Q: That's not what you said. Curtis: I probably wasn't cleat enough. Coroner: Not probably - you weren't. #ChloeValentine

Q: Why would you give this court evidence that was inaccurate? Curtis: I guess I just wasn't clear enough. I apologise. #ChloeValentine

Q: But you said you failed to get orders. Curtis: I failed to get what I wanted but, obviously, the court provided orders in some capacity.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Curtis agrees Family Care Meetings are being used as a precursor to court, not for their true purpose of fixing problems. #ChloeValentine

Stewart: I would agree I had not used the Family Care Meetings for that function, yes. #ChloeValentine

Curtis: While #ChloeValentine's case was terrible, every case in our unit was terrible. Does that mean we should take all those cases...

Curtis: ... those children, those families, to court? I'm just not sure. #ChloeValentine

Coroner: We're talking about Family Care Meetings. Curtis: Oh. Okay. Yes, I agree one should've been held for #ChloeValentine.

Coroner: There seems to be a lot of focus on Ashlee. Fair enough, she was a child (15yo) but there was a more vulnerable child here.

Coroner: Do Families SA social workers understand who they are meant to be protecting? #ChloeValentine

Curtis: We have such an incident-based system here. It's the only way social workers know how to respond. #ChloeValentine

Q: Was there enough evidence to remove #ChloeValentine? Curtis: No. Sadly that's the profile of every case we have on Families SA.

Curtis: I don't know what to say. They're all really bad. #ChloeValentine

Curtis' evidence has concluded. #ChloeValentine

The #ChloeValentine inquest looks set to go longer than planned. Likely there will be some closing submissions on Friday, not Wednesday...

... with Families SA & Victims of Crime then being given 2 weeks to prepare responses. Will be discussed further tomorrow. #ChloeValentine

The #ChloeValentine inquest has now adjourned until 10am tomorrow. @theTiser #newsADL

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 6h 6 hours ago

We've been told Mr Harrison intends to make a statement to the media outside the Coroners Court before starting his evidence. @theTiser

Harrison has arrived. "I very much recognise the life and tragic loss of #ChloeValentine," he said outside court. @theTiser #newsADL

Harrison: I'm very much looking forward to giving evidence. @theTiser #newsADL

Harrison: I'm confident the recommendations will very much support and improve child protection systems. @theTiser #newsADL

The #ChloeValentine inquest has resumed with evidence from DECS chief executive Tony Harrison. @theTiser #newsADL

Harrison was not part of DECS when Families SA was handling #ChloeValentine's case; was then Assistant Police Commissioner.

Harrison took on the role 2 weeks after handing down of Debelle Inquiry into child sex abuse. #ChloeValentine

Harrison oversaw "holistic merger & integration" of Education & child protection portfolios into a single department. #ChloeValentine

Harrison says internal Families SA review of #ChloeValentine case is "comprehensive, in depth, makes reasonable conclusions".

Harrison agrees with review that #ChloeValentine suffered "cumulative harm" over her life; "significant missed opportunities" to fix that.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 6h 6 hours ago

Harrison says Families SA identified all issues affecting #ChloeValentine but never considered them in combination to ensure her safety.

Harrison: Questions should have been asked, as early as 08, as to whether the removal of #ChloeValentine was appropriate.

Harrison: It does not appear there's evidence showing they were asked in 08, or in 2010 or 2011. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: Consideration should have been given to even the temporary removal of #ChloeValentine.

Harrison: We didn't attempt to approach #ChloeValentine's situation from outside the chaos that was happening in her family environment.

Harrison: Removal should have been considered as a circuit breaker to that chaos. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: The culture of SFSB was to keep the family together at all costs & enhance #ChloeValentine's mum's parenting capability.

Harrison: I wonder if we didn't persist with that approach for too long. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 6h 6 hours ago

Q: Did SFSB focus on mum, not #ChloeValentine? Harrison: My sense is the weighting was more on that than the purest child protection.

Harrison agrees the optimism of SFSB might have "shadowed or shaded" consideration of options like removal. #ChloeValentine

Harrison says he "totally supports" keeping families together; has seen too many times where removal has adversely affected children.

Harrison: The 'but' is there are limits to what we are able to tolerate & should tolerate with regard to protection, abuse & neglect.

Harrison: We have to be prepared, at the right time, to take strong intervention because that's needed to keep children alive.

Harrison says #ChloeValentine's death on a motorcycle was "probably hard to predict", but doesn't excuse missed opportunities.

Harrison: At different times, we could have taken different courses of action. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 6h 6 hours ago

Harrison says legislation could be altered so Family Care Meeting attendance is mandatory, not optional. Agrees they should be used.

Harrison: Social workers' views can be blurred by conflict between needing to build relationships with families and...

Harrison: ... the "very difficult decision" to take a child away from a family. Decision to do so still sits with Principal Social Worker.

Harrison: We will exceed 39,000 notifications of suspected child abuse by June 30 this year. #ChloeValentine :cry:

Harrison: We remove 350 children from their families each year. We average one per day in very sad circumstances. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: All Families SA staff will be called to a meeting on Friday to hear "clear messages" about child protection expectations.

Harrison says there is an opportunity to ensure new social workers are trained to interact with children, identify issues & support them.

Harrison says there's also opportunity to make child protection an issue & responsibility for the whole community, not just authorities.

State Coroner Mark Johns questions Harrison at length about "divergence" between legislative requirements & what social workers do each day.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 5h 5 hours ago

Harrison concedes the divergence between the Children's Protection Act & the actions of social workers. #ChloeValentine

Harrison says info should be freely shared between child protection workers, social workers and teachers now it's all one department.

Harrison is asked about Families SA respecting the privacy of sex offender Dylan Hindle who lived with, & bashed, #ChloeValentine's mum.

Families SA knew Hindle's history from an @theTiser report, wouldn't tell #ChloeValentine's mum about it.

Harrison suggests that's due to legislative requirements; Coroner dismisses that as "absurd" & without "any common sense whatsoever".

Coroner: There seems to be an obsession with secrecy, a fear of disclosing anything. #ChloeValentine

Coroner raises Families SA claim workers can't speak to neglected child's extended family without permission & consent of parent.

Leanne Stewart yesterday deemed it inappropriate to ask Belinda Valentine about the Hindle incident without #ChloeValentine's mum's consent.

Coroner: Whether she's right or wrong, & I think she's wrong, we can't have investigators thinking that way. #ChloeValentine

Coroner: You have people hidebound by secrecy. It's a situation that needs to be resolved desperately. #ChloeValentine

Harrison says he sees the value of Commonwealth income management, but questions the administrative & mechanics of implementing it.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 5h 5 hours ago

Coroner: It's a marvellous, excellent tool & if it had been employed with Ashlee Polkinghorne there's every chance it would have...

Coroner: ... sharpened her focus wonderfully because she was clearly motivated by money. #ChloeValentine

Coroner: She wanted money so she could spend it on drugs. #ChloeValentine was a great opportunity for her to get money.

Coroner: If someone had come along and said "sorry, the tap is going to be turned off unless you do the following things", it would...

Coroner: ... have potentially made a very big difference in her behaviour. So why on earth would you seek her consent first?

Coroner: Why not get rid of that unnecessary blockage to using a marvellous tool that...

Coroner: ... has huge potential to change the behaviour of every little Ashlee Polkinghorne that's out there at the moment?

Harrison agrees giving #ChloeValentine's case to a student social worker was inappropriate. Talks revamping how students are used.

Revamp could include mentoring of students, workbooks kept & filled out over 2yrs. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: Families SA still relies on outside drivers to transport children. They undergo police checks. #ChloeValentine

Harrison agrees it was not appropriate that #ChloeValentine was as an infant taken back to mum in chauffeur-driven car without supervision.

Q: Are you confident it's not happening now? Harrison: Yes. The crisis care system has changed since then. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: It's completely unacceptable practice that wouldn't and shouldn't happen today. #ChloeValentine

Harrison: If that were to happen today, it would be a breach of our practices & straight-out negligence. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 2h 2 hours ago

Harrison: We don't sufficiently invest in training & development of our staff. We're addressing that. #ChloeValentine

Coroner moves back to secrecy within Families SA. #ChloeValentine

Coroner: There's no duty of confidentiality in reporting domestic violence. No one will call the cops if a social worker reports assault.

Coroner: Are workers so embroiled in secrecy provisions and 10,000 other bits of paper that they think they can't tell anybody?

Harrison says there's room to improve understanding, but a "tension" when building relationships with victims.

Harrison says workers want domestic violence victims to "seek intervention themselves" & "break the cycle". #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster @SeanFewster · 2h 2 hours ago

Harrison is asked about the safety plan, drafted by Nicholas Ratsch, allowing #ChloeValentine's mum to use drugs.

He's asked if the document was appropriate; says it might "seem absurd" but you can't view drug use as sole reason to remove a child.

Coroner: That wasn't the question. #ChloeValentine

Coroner asks if Harrison thinks it appropriate Chloe's mum was asked to sign such a document. "How on earth could you condone that?"

Harrison: "I'm not condoning it. I would never condone it." Says safety plan process is being reviewed. #ChloeValentine

Harrison says Families SA is investigating using iPads in the field so all matters are noted contemporaneously, no notes are lost.

Coroner announces he is making an interim recommendation: that Families SA immediately start using Commonwealth income management.

Coroner recommends they refer people to the Commonwealth income management scheme without seeking their consent. #ChloeValentine

The #ChloeValentine inquest has adjourned until 10am Friday, when there will be closing submissions. @theTiser #newsADL

Families SA boss says "We missed our chance with #ChloeValentine": http://bit.ly/1DgYE6W via @theTiser #newsADL

 

[StarrChance]

If this monster ever had another child how does the law stand? :gasp: Immediately removed?

 

[SouthAussie]

Seriously sad stuff. Most of these social workers defending themselves, instead of admitting that things could have been done better.
It is almost as if they need to do a clean sweep, and get rid of the ones that are deeply ingrained in their stance that everything they did was correct - what else could they do? :gaah:

I heard on TV news that Harrison said that he will personally be doing all hiring for Families SA from now on.

I agree with the person who said that the social workers need to know how to interact with the children themselves.
As well as read the signs from the children (and perhaps even see the child/ren - instead of 'investigating' reports while not even seeing Chloe for a month). :thud:
And instead of communicating only with the lying, manipulating parent(s) who are deeply invested in keeping their children for whatever benefit it is to them ($$$ in some cases, apparently). Many of these children have extended families who are aware of the issues and want to help.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

The #ChloeValentine inquest has resumed with closing submissions from Naomi Kereru, counsel assisting the Coroner. @theTiser #newsADL

Kereru: There have been 39 witnesses over 26 days since September. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: They have all given evidence of the chaotic and miserable life #ChloeValentine led.

Kereru: That #ChloeValentine wasn't taken to hospital after falling off that bike is indicative of the issues underlying her life.

Kereru: The injuries #ChloeValentine sustained are at odds with this being "an accident", despite Families SA witnesses using that word.

Kereru: The pathologist had never seen bruises like that before on a child, & only once on an adult. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Kereru: This was no accident, it was the culmination of years of abuse, neglect & constant exposure to factors that made her unsafe.

Kereru: Her safety was largely ignored by the agencies charged to protect her. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Families SA approached #ChloeValentine's case as "why would be take this child away?". Should have been the other way.

Kereru: Without intensive support, #ChloeValentine's mum couldn't function as anything other than a reckless, uncaring teenager.

Kereru: #ChloeValentine's mum claim she was better on drugs was astonishing, shocking. Should've been removed then; wasn't even considered.

Kereru: There was a clear opportunity to intervene; if that had been done, the trajectory might have been different. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Nicholas Ratsch made excuses for #ChloeValentine's mum, championed her, undermined other agencies to her, focused on her as client.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Kereru: Ratsch minimised credible info from other agencies & notifiers which should've been considered for #ChloeValentine's safety.

Kereru: It's starkly obvious other agencies were raising alarm bells but Nicholas Ratsch was ignoring them. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: A lot can be blamed on Families SA's Strong Families, Safe Babies program for its single-minded focus on... #ChloeValentine

Kereru: ... preserving the family unit at the cost of #ChloeValentine's safety. But the program can't be responsible for Nicholas Ratsch.

Kereru: That Nicholas Ratsch has since taken up a senior position in Families SA is of concern. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: The student social worker took the best notes of everyone in the case. She also knew when to escalate her concerns. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: The student's concerned were minimised by her superiors. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Students shouldn't be taking on cases. It was inappropriate and unfair to them. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Even while homeless, #ChloeValentine's mum was running the show, had the upper hand on Families SA. They played catch-up.

Kereru: The night #ChloeValentine's mum abandoned her on the beach in the care of a 15yo girl is the most serious incident save her death.

Kereru: #ChloeValentine should have been removed then, and I ask Your Honour to make that finding. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Kereru: Crisis Care returned #ChloeValentine to her mum not because it was right, but because it was the path of least resistance.

Kereru: Crisis Care forced Belinda Valentine to decide where #ChloeValentine should go; that was inappropriate, that was their job.

Kereru: This was a catastrophic failure. Having a stranger drive her back was shocking. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Crisis Care put #ChloeValentine at further, unnecessary risk that night.

Kereru: There is an absence of critical decision-making records from Families SA witnesses. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: That's a feature of all Families SA staff across all levels throughout the chronology. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Some of the notes we do have are inaccurate or misleading. #ChloeValentine

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Kereru: They are examples of Families SA & SFSB reaching for something optimistic about this family to reinforce their perspective.

Kereru: Child abuse was confirmed after #ChloeValentine witnessed domestic violence, but nothing changed.

Kereru: #ChloeValentine's mum's lack of respect for Families SA was evident in her using a worker's government phone to organise drug deal.

Kereru: Leanne Stewart had a habit of not writing down important events in #ChloeValentine's care.

Kereru: A lack of collaboration with other agencies appears to be a feature of Families SA. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: There was a blurring of the lines as to who the client was - #ChloeValentine or her mum.

Kereru raises conflict between Leanne Stewart & Belinda Valentine as to whether they discussed #ChloeValentine witnessing domestic violence.

Kereru: Belinda Valentine had no motive to lie. Stewart had reasons to not be honest. If she didn't act, it was a dereliction of her duty.

Kereru: I don't ask Your Honour to find Stewart lied, but I do ask you prefer the evidence of Belinda Valentine. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Belinda Valentine's evidence pieced in perfectly with the evidence; she was clearly a concerned grandmother. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: #ChloeValentine's mum's behaviour was offensive, aggressive and manipulative.

Coroner: There's no evidence to reach the optimistic conclusion that #ChloeValentine would have been fine if not for SFSB.

Coroner: I'm very reluctant to conclude that this was attributable to SFSB & that a different culture existed in the rest of Families SA.

Kereru: I would agree. Your Honour can't conclude that. There's evidence of catastrophic failures in Families SA.

Kereru: The short-lived improvement #ChloeValentine's mum did show, at times, indicates strong intervention might have worked. Maybe.

Kereru: The last 18mths of #ChloeValentine's case history are the most harrowing.

Kereru: #ChloeValentine's mum showed real disdain for her; she was distressed upon returning to mum.

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

Kereru: There was an egregious failure to intervene in #ChloeValentine's life in any meaningful way at that time

Kereru: Bailey, Clarke & Rainsford, at all levels, failed to see what was right in front of them. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: For Rainsford to prepare & present a report that was blatantly wrong is beyond comprehension. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Not one of those workers demonstrated insight into their failures. Clarke didn't come to help the inquest. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: Clarke was rude, abrasive, unhelpful, sarcastic and had selective memory of certain events. #ChloeValentine

Kereru: #ChloeValentine's loved ones were yelling as loud as they could for help. Families SA had cut off the link to hear them.

Kereru asks Coroner to, in the #ChloeValentine inquest, find six things...

 

[Amee]

Sean Fewster ✔ @SeanFewster

1. #ChloeValentine's safety was never central to Families SA; it preferred the mum's needs & acquiesced to them.

2. Families SA "reauthored" known facts about #ChloeValentine's uncertain safety.

3. Families SA addressed its resourcing issues with students. #ChloeValentine

4. Families SA saw drugs & domestic violence not as risks to #ChloeValentine but as her mum's lifestyle.

5. Opportunities to remove #ChloeValentine could have been IDed and used, but we're not.

6. Families SA had no sanctions nor consequences for #ChloeValentine's mum's inability to keep her daughter safe, resulting in her death.

Counsel for Families SA now making his closing submissions in thrb#ChloeValentine inquest.

He says Families SA accepts criticism, of Youth Court, that it doesn't use Family Care Meetings properly. #ChloeValentine

Asks Coroner to recommend Families SA have power to order compulsory attendance at Family Care Meetings, with penalties for refusing.

Families SA still insists "it cannot be the case" that children are removed every time a parent is using drugs. #ChloeValentine

Families SA says there is considerable confusion as to when workers can share info; asks Coroner recommend change to legislation...

... that would clearly state info cam and should be shared if necessary to protect the safety of a child. #ChloeValentine

Counsel for Families SA quotes @TomRichardson that it operates in "hideous, imperfect world". #ChloeValentine