This article was originally published by Lucy from Naarm. You can find the original article here.
Please carefully consider your needs when reading the following story about suicide and self-harm. If this material raises concerns for you contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, or see other ways you can seek help in Australia, US, UK or internationally. —Lucy
Coroner Ingrid Giles is handing down findings today into the Victorian gender-diverse suicide cluster this morning. The inquest examined the suicides of five trans and gender-diverse Victorians.
The lead case in the inquest is that of Bridget Flack, a 28-year-old woman whose body was found in the Melbourne suburb of Kew by a member of the LGBT community after extensive search.
Victoria Police admitted to failings in the investigation into Bridget Flacks’ disappearance after Flack’s sister told the coronial inquest that she struggled to get assistance from Police in looking for Flack.
A missing person report for Bridget, who had affirmed her gender, was filed by Police under her former name with an outdated photo from LEAP, failing to reflect her true identity.
The initial report also neglected to select critical risk factors, leading to delays in the search efforts. “There were 2-3 boxes in the form,” the coroner noted, adding that Bridget’s risk was marked as medium when it should have been high.
Additionally, the inquest found that Bridget’s phone was not geolocated using triangulation and that Victoria Police failed to do so. The urgency resides in the fact that the triangulation must happen while the phone is on and before it becomes flat.
Despite receiving additional information, including details about Bridget seeking mental health assistance, Victoria Police did not update the risk assessment at any point, compromising the urgency and effectiveness of the investigation and ultimately leading to her being found by two members of the LGBTQI community.
Bridget is described as intelligent and compassionate. Many of her creative outputs, including wiring art and music, reflected her multifaceted aspects of being transgender, including pride in her transgender identity.
Significant other failures are being read out by the coroner and this article will be updated in due course.
More to come.
If this material raises concerns for you, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or find other ways you can seek help in Australia, the US, the UK, or internationally. —Lucy
