Families of six victims provide statements to coronial inquest

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A coronial inquest into the Bondi Junction attack has held its final day of witness testimonies. After five weeks the families of the six victims killed in the stabbing attack last year have provided emotional statements to the coroner.

Transcript

00:00Well there was no shortage of tears or tissues inside coroner's court today as the families

00:08and loved ones of those victims provided heartfelt and often heartbreaking statements to the coroner

00:16speaking about their individual loss, the effect that this tragic incident has had on them but

00:23also the importance of remembering each of those six people killed at Bondi Junction Westfield

00:29in April last year and while I won't be able to do justice to the many individual tributes that were

00:35paid today I think it's important one message that was echoed by a number of those loved ones is to

00:41remember those people as more than just victims so I think it's important we read out each of those

00:46individuals names that's Dawn Singleton, Jade Young, Ishan Shang, Ashley Good, Faraz Tahir and Picrea

00:52Dacia all of whom were killed at Bondi Junction last year. Now many of the families spoke

00:59about just how difficult this foreign legal process has been for them but many expressed

01:05a hope that this coronial inquest will lead to substantial change especially in the areas of

01:13mental health. Now over the last five weeks we've heard extensive details about Joel Couchy's

01:19treatment and care from when he was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 17, his transfer from

01:27the public to the private system and the decision to wean him off all anti-psychotic medication in the

01:33years leading up to the attack. In regards to mental health there's also his multiple interactions

01:38with Queensland police and New South Wales police as well and we're expecting some substantial

01:43recommendations when it comes to police responding to mental health call-outs in the future. There was

01:49also a particular mention from multiple families today in regards to media coverage and the effect

01:55that the media have had on the loved ones of those victims and the need to focus on prioritising the

02:03not causing emotional injury, further emotional injury to the loved ones who have been affected by

02:09these tragic events. Joe? And now that this section of the inquest is over what happens next?

02:15Well Joe, there's still plenty of written submissions that will need to be delivered to the coroner in

02:23the coming months. We're expecting the final hearings to be heard in October. That's when council

02:31assisting will deliver their closing submissions to the coroner. That's in October and the coroner has

02:38flagged that she hopes she'll be able to deliver her findings and recommendations before Christmas this

02:44year. Now coroner Teresa O'Sullivan concluded today's hearings by saying she will never forget what was

02:51heard inside court today and particularly promised those families and loved ones that she will not

02:57forget them in the next stages of this coronial inquest which is all about preventing such a tragic

03:04event from ever taking place again. Joe?

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