Latest news with #ElizabethYoung
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Health
- The Guardian
‘I hurt so terribly': after weeks of detail, Bondi Junction inquest ends with reminder of families' anguish
Elizabeth Young has had her daughter's Chinese name, Meh Yuk, tattooed onto her left arm. 'Beautiful Jade, the name her grandparents gave her,' the heartbroken mother told the New South Wales coroner's court on Thursday, sitting close by her dog, Teddy, in the witness box. Jade Young, 47, was killed by Joel Cauchi in Sydney's Westfield Bondi Junction on 13 April 2024. The architect had been shopping with her daughter. Elizabeth's was the first family statement made on the final day of the coronial inquest into the shopping centre stabbing rampage that claimed six lives. It ended only when Cauchi, who had schizophrenia, was shot and killed by police inspector Amy Scott. Over 20 hearing days, the inquest heard from 50 witnesses. The brief contained 51 volumes and 8,000 witness statements over 40,000 pages. On the final morning, throughout the packed courtroom, overflow court and media room of the Lidcombe courts complex, boxes of tissues had been placed within easy reach. Unlike the 'carefully measured objectivity' of the court proceedings, Elizabeth said, her words were a 'distillation and a manifestation of anguish'. 'I hurt so terribly that our lovely, loving, clever, compassionate, thoughtful, slightly goofy, funny, gentle girl no longer has the chance to be, to exist in the now,' she said, flanked by her husband, Ivan, son, Peter, and son-in-law, Noel McLaughlin. 'The moment he casually plunged that blade into Jade, our ordinary lives were shattered. I remember too easily, too often, with instant, nightmarish recall … that she is dead. 'I long for her.' Over the five weeks of the inquest, much has been said about the minutiae of active armed offender incidents, security protocols, emergency responses and the erstwhile medication regimen of a man who killed and injured 16 people in the 'floridly psychotic' last five minutes of his life. This week, state coroner Teresa O'Sullivan heard a side of the day's horrors that had so far remained largely out of sight, as, one by one, the family and loved ones of the murdered had their say. The parents of Yixuan Cheng, 27, described their grief as a 'piercing, bone-deep, soul crushing agony that is beyond description, that follows you like a shadow'. In a statement read in court by their barrister, Daniel Roff, Jun Xing and Pengfei Cheng described losing their only child, who had been 'thriving' as a student in Sydney. The last time they saw her was the month before her death. 'Yixuan was the treasure of our lives … We aged overnight, our hair turned grey. We never had the chance to tell her that being her mother and father were the greatest gifts life gave us.' Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Roff fought back tears as he read, as did barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC, who read statements from the family of 38-year-old Ashlee Good. Muzafar Ahmad Tahir, the brother of Faraz Tahir, 30, told the court that Australia had given his brother a 'sense of security'. 'None of us could have imagined that such a tragedy would befall him.' The Pakistani citizen was on duty as a security guard inside Westfield Bondi Junction at the time of the attack. 'He will always be remembered as a symbol of bravery,' his brother said, adding that it was a moment of immense pride when the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, called Faraz a 'national hero'. George Darchia, the son of Pikria Darchia, 55, said in a statement read out in court that his mother's loss was accompanied by 'something deeper' than regret he had not been with her. His brother, Irakli Dvali, said of the way his mother 'left this world … it breaks me'. Cauchi's family was invited to give a statement to the inquest, but did not. Thursday's remarkable testimony closed an intensely studied and poignant inquest, punctuated by startling moments. In the first week, vision displayed in court of Scott's one-minute chase and shooting of Cauchi showed her calm and control. In a compilation of CCTV and 3D reconstructions released by the court, Scott, flanked by two French bystanders and a security guard – but without a police partner or bulletproof vest – can be seen walking up an escalator, pursuing Cauchi on foot. She was nauseous, she told the court, because 'I had resigned myself to the fact that I was probably going to die'. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion When Cauchi stopped, Scott stopped. Not wanting to shout within his earshot, she used silent signals to direct a woman with a pram – hiding near a large pot plant – to run. The officer then called out 'mate' to get Cauchi's attention. When he started to sprint towards her, she fired her gun three times. Two bullets hit him; one was later found in the pot plant. Scott's actions, the court heard, were 'absolutely perfect'. Westfield's security was heavily scrutinised throughout the inquest. The centre's CCTV control room – containing 954 camera views – was unstaffed for nearly the first two minutes of Cauchi's spree because its sole security room operator was using the bathroom. The controller's response when she returned was criticised during the inquest by UK security expert Scott Wilson as 'inadequate'. The court heard that paramedics' ballistic PPE was not easy to access, and that the Westfield centre was then designated a 'hot zone' by NSW Ambulance – meaning paramedics were not allowed to enterbecause of the risk of a second active armed offender, despite police already having determined Cauchi acted alone. Ultimately however, the inquest heard, the hot zone restrictions made no clinical impact that day. The lack of preparedness on some levels was perhaps a symptom of a more positive aspect of Australian life: the country is not a regular site of mass casualty events. Sydney's last major fatal active armed offender incident – the Lindt cafe siege in 2014, in which three people, including the attacker, died – was referenced several times in the inquest. Experts told the court the 'escape, hide, tell' safety mantra for terrorist attacks was not as well-known in Australia as in the UK. In court, Queensland police admitted to having missed an opportunity for intervention in 2023 when responding to Cauchi's allegations his father had stolen his knives. An email sent from one of the officers that day requested follow-up, the inquest heard, which an under-resourced mental health intervention coordinator then forgot to act on. How Cauchi came to be unmedicated for the last five years of his life was a key question for the coroner. Cauchi's mother, Michele, had raised concerns on at least seven occasions about possible early warning signs of relapse after her son was removed from his antipsychotic medication for his chronic schizophrenia in 2019. But Dr Andrea Boros-Lavack, Cauchi's private Toowoomba psychiatrist from 2012 until 2020, had repeatedly put those behavioural changes down to other factors. When she discharged him from her practice because of his move to Brisbane, Boros-Lavack did not refer Cauchi to a psychiatrist in his new home city, despite stating that he needed monthly psychiatric monitoring. While in Brisbane, he was given psychiatric approval for – but 'fortunately' did not follow through on – a gun licence. At one notable point in the inquest, Boros-Lavack stated that her former patient had not been psychotic at the time of his attack, which she believed was instead driven by 'sexual frustration, pornography and hatred towards women'. She sensationally withdrew the comments the next morning, calling them 'conjecture'. Her words nevertheless left their mark. In his statement on Thursday, Jade Young's brother, Peter, said his sister had been killed by a man whose 'rapid hunt' was 'fuelled by his frustration with not finding a 'nice' girl to marry. What a coward!' Even amid the highly technical level of detail canvassed by the inquest, barely a witness appeared untouched by the incident. On Thursday, however, their pain was dwarfed by that of the families. In some cases, media handling and coverage of the attack had heightened the heartache. In court on Thursday, the loved ones of Dawn Singleton, 25, did not make a statement – but this week, their grievances about radio host Ray Hadley mentioning Dawn's name on air before the family had formally identified her came to light in documents tendered to court. Elizabeth Young, too, described the horror of learning that images of her daughter's body had been broadcast and shared on social media. 'I learned a new phrase in the days after April 13,' she said: 'trauma porn.' For all the potential recommendations from the inquest, there was no way to make amends for her family's loss, she said. After the attack, her granddaughter – who was beside Jade when Cauchi delivered his single, catastrophic blow – drew her a plan, in blue crayon, showing exactly 'where Mummy fell'. 'Pause,' she told the court, 'and think on that.'
BBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Bondi stabbing: How killer Joel Cauchi slipped through the cracks
For many, Saturdays are something to look forward to - relaxed times, enjoyed with family and friends. But Elizabeth Young "dreads" them. It's a weekly reminder of her daughter Jade's violent murder at Westfield Bondi Junction."On a lovely autumn afternoon, to learn your daughter is dead, stabbed in broad daylight, killed amidst fellow unsuspecting shoppers... [when she] was living, breathing, just an hour ago... it's the stuff of nightmares, of a parallel universe," Elizabeth told an inquiry into the mass killing this week."The moment [the attacker] casually plunged that knife into Jade, our ordinary lives were shattered."Her pain was echoed by families of the other victims who gave emotional testimonies on the final day of a five-week coronial inquest into the fatal stabbings on 13 April last inquiry sought to understand how a 40-year-old Queensland man with a long history of mental illness was able to walk into the popular Sydney shopping centre on a busy Saturday afternoon and kill six people, injuring 10 others including a nine-month-old court heard hours of evidence from dozens of witnesses - doctors, survivors, victims' families, police - in a bid to find out how, or if, Australia can prevent a such a tragedy happening again."It seems to me that my daughter and five others were killed by the cumulative failures of numbers of people within a whole series of fallible systems," Elizabeth told New South Wales (NSW) Coroners Court. Shopping centre stabbings shock nation It was a mild, sparkling afternoon - the first day of school holidays – when Joel Cauchi walked into the sprawling shopping centre, just minutes from Australia's most famous before 15:33 local time (GMT), Cauchi took a 30cm knife from his backpack and stabbed to death his first victim, 25-year-old Dawn Singleton. Within three minutes, he had fatally attacked five others – Yixuan Cheng, 27; Jade Young, 47, Ashlee Good, 38; Faraz Tahir, 30; and Pikria Darchia, 55. Cauchi also injured 10 others including Good's infant 15:38, five minutes after his rampage started, Cauchi was shot dead by police officer Amy Scott, who had been on duty nearby and arrived at the centre about a minute news outlets reported on the killings, Cauchi's parents recognised their son on TV and called the police to alert them about his decades-long struggle with serious mental health Young's family was also confronted by images of her on TV, describing to the inquest the horror of seeing video which showed her "lifeless body being worked on". Similarly, Julie Singleton, whose daughter Dawn was killed while standing in a line at a bakery, heard her daughter named as a victim on the radio before her body had even been formally identified and other relatives scenes at Bondi sent shockwaves across the nation, where mass murder is rare, and prompted a rush of anger and fear from women in particular. All except two of the 16 victims were female, including five of the six people who died. Missed opportunities for intervention A key focus of the inquest was to scrutinise the multiple interactions Cauchi had with police and mental health professionals in the months and years leading up to the inquest heard that Cauchi was once a bright young man with a promising life ahead of him. His family say he was a gifted student, and had attended a private school on scholarship before topping his class at the age of 17, in 2001, Cauchi was diagnosed with schizophrenia and soon started taking medication for his a decade of managing it in the public health system, Cauchi started regular sessions with psychiatrist Dr Andrea Boros-Lavack in his hometown of Toowoomba in 2015 he complained about the medication side effects, so Dr Boros-Lavack started to gradually reduce his dosage of clozapine – used for treatment-resistant schizophrenia – after seeking a second opinion from another psychiatrist, the inquest weaned him off clozapine entirely in 2018 and Cauchi also stopped taking medication to treat his obsessive-compulsive disorder the year after, she 2019, for the first time in about 15 years, Cauchi was no longer on antipsychotic medications. No second opinion on completely stopping either drug was sought by Dr Boros-Lavack, she admitted under inquest heard from medical professionals who said that in most cases, patients coming off antipsychotic medications transition to another one, rather than ceasing treatment months, Cauchi's mum contacted his psychiatrist with concerns about her son's mental state after finding notes showing he believed he was "under satanic control". Around the same time, Cauchi developed what Dr Boros-Lavack told the inquest was "a compulsive interest in porn". She wrote a prescription but told the inquest it was up to Cauchi to decide if he would start taking the medication 2020, Cauchi left his family home, moved to Brisbane and stopped seeing Dr this time, after almost two decades of treatment, Cauchi had no regular psychiatrist, was not on any medications to treat his schizophrenia and had no family living inquest heard he began seeking a gun licence, contacting three Brisbane doctors for a medical certificate to support his application. They either didn't request access to his medical file or weren't given his whole history by Dr Boros-Lavack, who said if they needed more information they could have asked her for it. The third doctor gave Cauchi the clearance he was after, but he never applied for a gun, the court was told. Meanwhile Cauchi was increasingly coming into contact with police. After moving to Brisbane, he was pulled over three times for driving erratically. In 2021, officers were called to Cauchi's unit in Brisbane after residents heard a man screaming and banging 2022, Cauchi was reported to police after calling a girl's school to ask if he could come and watch the students swim and play sports. Officers tried to call Cauchi but weren't able to reach January 2023, Cauchi had moved back in with his parents in Toowoomba and called police to complain that his father had stolen his collection of "pigging knives". At this time, his mother raised concerns with the officers, saying he should be back on can't detain people for mental health reasons unless they are a risk to themselves and as the officers had assessed Cauchi did not meet that description, they left, the court the call-out, one of the attending police officers sent an email to an internal police mental health coordinator, requesting they follow up on Cauchi. However, the email was overlooked due to understaffing, the inquest was later, police in Sydney found Cauchi sleeping rough near a road after being called by a concerned 2024 Cauchi's mental health had deteriorated, he was homeless, and isolated from his family. Three minutes that changed everything The inquest looked closely at Cauchi's mental health treatment in Queensland, with a panel of five psychiatrists tasked with reviewing found that Dr Boros-Lavack had missed opportunities to put him back on anti-psychotic medication, one member of the panel saying she had "not taken seriously enough" the concerns from Cauchi's mother in panel also gave evidence at the inquest that Cauchi was "floridly psychotic" - in the active part of a psychotic episode – when he walked into the shopping questioned by the lawyer assisting the coroner, Dr Boros-Lavack stressed: "I did not fail in my care of Joel."She had earlier told the inquest she believed Cauchi was not psychotic during the attack and that medication would not have prevented the Boros-Lavack said the attacks may have been "due to his sexual frustration, pornography and hatred towards women".But the next day, she withdrew that evidence, saying it was simply "conjecture" and she was not in a position to assess Cauchi's mental state, having not treated him since the inquest is investigating whether Cauchi targeted specific individuals or Peter Young, the brother of Jade, the answer seemed clear. "Fuelled by his frustration with not finding a 'nice' girl to marry", his "rapid hunt found 16 victims, 14 of which were women," he told the NSW Police Commissioner in the days after the attack said it was "obvious" to detectives that the offender had focussed on during the inquest, the homicide squad's Andrew Paul Marks said he did not believe there was evidence that Cauchi had specifically targeted inquiry also heard about a number of failings or near misses in the way security, police, paramedics and the media responded to the was told that recruitment and training pressures for the security provider meant that the centre's control room operator was not "competent". At the exact moment when Cauchi stabbed his first victim, the room was unattended as she was on a toilet break. Security guard Faraz Tahir, the sole male victim of the stabbings, was working his first day on the job when he was killing trying to stop Cauchi, raising questions over the powers and protection given to personnel like brother, Muzafar, told the inquest how Faraz died "with honour as a hero" and also acknowledged that Cauchi's parents had lost their son: "We know that this tragedy is not their fault."The contractor responsible for security at the shopping centre has since updated its training and policies, as well as introducing stab-proof vests for families criticised media coverage in the wake of the attack, telling the inquiry they hoped the industry would reflect on how they should report sensitive stories so as not to further traumatise those affected. Lessons to be learnt After weeks of evidence, the inquest was adjourned on Thursday with NSW state coroner Teresa O'Sullivan expected to deliver her recommendations by the end of the the start of the inquest, O'Sullivan said the hearings weren't about who was to blame for the attacks, but rather to "identify potential opportunities for reform or improvement to enable such events to be avoided in the future"."I want the families to know their loved ones will not be lost in this process." Elizabeth Young, though, told the court, for her, "nothing good" will come from the inquest."At 74, I have lost my way in life," she said, describing the crippling impact of the she said the action the country needed to take was already obvious to her."My daughter was murdered by an unmedicated, chronic schizophrenic... who had in his possession knives designed for killing."[This is] another cry out to an Australia that doesn't seem to want to acknowledge that what happened... is essentially the catastrophic consequence of years of neglect of, and within, our mental health systems."
The Guardian
4 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
'Trauma porn': media urged to reflect on role as victims' families speak at Bondi Junction stabbing inquest
Families of some of the victims of the Bondi Junction stabbings have told the inquest that intrusive media tactics compounded their grief and that inaccurate reporting was rife. The inquest was extended to examine media reporting in the immediate aftermath of the event and the impact on the families of the deceased, giving the public a rare insight into what it's like to be at the centre of the media spotlight. Ashley Wildey, whose partner, Dawn Singleton, was one of six victims of Joel Cauchi on Saturday 13 April 2024, said reporters gathered outside a family member's home the morning after the murders 'trying to get vision of me or my family there'. He said he was bombarded by 'highly inappropriate' messages from journalists 'lacking any genuine compassion' sent to his private social media accounts. He ignored them all. 'I feel that the media involvement to date has lacked empathy and truthfulness which has only served to exacerbate my pain and that of those who actually knew Dawn,' he told the New South Wales coroner's court. Wildey said reports that Singleton had been shopping for wedding makeup were not true. 'I am not aware of any basis for this claim,' he said. 'It is false. As far as I am aware, Dawn did not go into the Chanel store in Westfield Bondi Junction on the day.' Jade Young's mother, Elizabeth Young, said TV reporters appeared outside Jade's home the morning after the tragedy. Young, 74, said she was shocked by the graphic images of the aftermath broadcast on television. 'Images of Jade's lifeless body being worked on were cast throughout the world … including on a national channel's evening news,' she said. 'I learned a new phrase in the days after April 13: trauma porn.' Dawn's mother, Julie Singleton, said she received notes, emails, text messages and phone calls from reporters for months and she felt her privacy had been violated. And while she was forbidden by police from seeing her daughter's body inside Westfield, the media were permitted to film her daughter's body being taken out of the centre on a gurney. But Singletons's family reserved their strongest criticism for former 2GB broadcaster Ray Hadley who said her name on air while speaking to 3AW presenters Ross Stevenson and Russel Howcroft on the Monday morning before they had formally identified her body. 'I find it highly offensive that [he] appears to have capitalised on the unfathomable murder of my fiancee by immediately publicly broadcasting it on radio without even consulting her immediate family or myself,' Wildey said. Singleton: 'I felt that we as a family had a right to privacy. All this coverage distressed me and my family greatly.' Counsel assisting the coroner, Peggy Dwyer SC, said at the start of the five-week inquest 'the media will have to reflect deeply' on graphic footage shown in reports. Families are hoping the coroner will make recommendations which may protect families in the future. Young's brother, Peter Young, told the court: 'I trust you will also consider these factors when making recommendations from this inquest: Media guidelines on reporting mass casualty events. The moral injury caused by the media's monetisation of tragic events.' Hadley has been approached for comment. The 40-year extension of the North West Shelf gas project granted by the federal environment minister, Murray Watt, this week was welcomed in some media quarters, namely those owned by Western Australian billionaire Kerry Stokes. 'COOKING WITH GAS North West Shelf a goer', declared a strap on the front page on The Nightly, the West Australian's digital newspaper. Below that it featured an arresting image of the Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, portrayed as a North Korean dictator with the headline ROGUE STATE. It was a reference to the Santos boss, Kevin Gallagher's comments comparing Victoria's investment climate to North Korea. Gallagher said Queensland, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and South Australia were 'very supportive jurisdictions' for onshore investment', while 'Victoria, North Korea, they're in a different category altogether'. The publication also published a banner ad from Woodside Energy along the bottom of the page: 'Produce reliable energy for today. Invest in new energy for tomorrow. Challenge accepted.' Meanwhile the West Australian's front page said 'Shelf Life', and a double page spread inside featured a large photo of a smiling Woodside chief executive, Meg O'Neill. According to the Herald Sun, Allan told a Victorian Chamber of Commerce of Industry event that Victoria had created more jobs than other states, which was 'not bad for a place apparently run like North Korea'. The premier told the Herald Sun [the comments from Santos] were driven by fear of competition. 'Victoria is growing, open for business, and investing in energy – including gas.' The Australian meanwhile chimed in with fart jokes. 'Is Victoria about to pass gas project despite discomfort with LNG?, the august organ asked on the eve of the decision. Sign up to Weekly Beast Amanda Meade's weekly diary on the latest in Australian media, free every Friday after newsletter promotion 'When it comes to gas Victoria is more likely to pass wind projects …' Comedian Kitty Flanagan told a Women in Media gala dinner on Wednesday night how delighted she was to be invited to give the second annual oration at the black tie event. The star of ABC TV hit Fisk said she thought the gig was a good fit given who had delivered the first oration in 2024. That was until she realised it was not fellow comic Kate McLennan of Katering Show fame but Kate McClymont, a 'serious investigative journalist' from the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age. Flanagan brought the house down, and McClymont, who was a 'prize' in the silent auction, did not appear offended by the name mix-up. The comedian inspired the audience by tracing her career trajectory from a failing standup performer to a regular spot on Ten's The Project which raised her profile and allowed her to tour her act successfully. 'My advice to young women, stick around,' she said. 'Work harder than you think you have to, and try not to get angry or disappointed when things fall over. And things fall over in this industry a lot.' Two of Australia's most prominent newspapers came under fire during a single session at the Sydney Writers festival last week, when Michael Gawenda, former editor-in-chief of the Age, and Philippe Sands, a British barrister and author spoke on a panel about antisemitism and xenophobia. Gawenda took aim at his former paper, saying he had not been published in the Age, the paper he had worked at for four decades, since the 7 October attacks. The comments came as Gawenda was recounting stories of Jewish Australians working in the arts who had been refused gigs because of their political stance on Israel. 'In terms of not getting gigs, I worked for The Age for 40 years, I ended up editor-in-chief of The Age. Since October the seventh, I have not been published in the Age,' he said. 'I don't know why not, I can't tell you exactly why not. But it seems to me that it has something to do with whatever I wrote in my book about my position on Israel.' Gawenda later told Weekly Beast that while he had discussions with the paper's editor since 7 October about writing for the Age, these discussions were not followed up. He said that at this point in his career he doesn't pitch individual articles, but writes when approached by editors and 'The Age has never asked, despite our conversations about it, and they've made it clear they don't want me.' He said he has never been told specifically that his views on Israel were precluding him from writing for the paper, but said: 'What other reason could there be, my work isn't good enough? I can't think of another reason.' The Age declined to comment. It was Murdoch's The Australian newspaper which came under attack from Gawenda's fellow panellist, Sands, who said an article in the broadsheet in February was 'totally ridiculous'. Sands, who is Jewish, has written extensively about the origins of the legal definition of genocide and crimes against humanity, most famously in his family memoir East West Street. 'When an article appears in the Australian and some of you would have seen it, which is how outrageous it is that the Sydney writers' festival has invited Sands to speak because he acted for the Palestinian Authority … It was just totally ridiculous. It was offensive. It was stupid.' Headlined 'Sydney Writers festival invite for barrister Philippe Sands who took on Israel' the Australian framed Sands as 'a barrister who represented Palestine in a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and argued for the immediate withdrawal of Israel from the occupied territories'. Many of the commenters expressed their fury about Sands' invitation underneath the story. He said he was part of a team that had been retained to argue for the right to self determination before the International Court of Justice and all of a sudden it was said 'he's anti-Israel, anti-Jewish, it's a nonsense'. A spokesperson for The Australian strongly rejected that the story was in any way an attempt to criticise Sands and pointed out that the author, Caroline Overington, wrote columns in which she encouraged readers to see him and said he is a brilliant mind. Additional reporting by Kate Lyons
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Health
- The Guardian
Heartbroken mother tells inquest she's ‘lost her way' after ‘stuff of nightmares' murders at Bondi Junction
The mother of Jade Young, a victim of the Bondi Junction stabbings, has described her daughter's murder as the 'stuff of nightmares' and the result of 'years of neglect' within the mental health system. Elizabeth Young told the New South Wales coroners court on Thursday that her words were 'both a distillation and a manifestation of anguish'. She said that it 'hurt terribly' that her loving, clever, compassionate, thoughtful and 'slightly goofy' daughter 'no longer has a chance to exist – to be in the future'. 'At 74, I have lost my way in life,' Young told the court. 'The moment he casually plunged that knife into Jade, our ordinary lives were shattered.' Elizabeth Young was accompanied in court by her husband, Ivan, her son, Peter, and Jade's husband, Noel. Elizabeth's dog, Teddy, was also at the inquest. Family statements were being given during the final days of the five-week coronial inquest. Schizophrenic man Joel Cauchi, 40, killed Ashlee Good, 38, Yixuan Cheng, 27, Pikria Darchia, 55, Dawn Singleton, 25, Faraz Tahir, 30 and Jade Young, 47. He injured 10 others at Westfield Bondi Junction on 13 April 2024 before he was shot and killed by police officer Amy Scott. Elizabeth Young remembered laughing with her daughter about washing a blanket, sending her a photo of a perfect fairy ring of mushrooms and her final emoji message in the days before she was murdered. Jade had been shopping with her daughter at the time of the attack. Elizabeth said her granddaughter later drew 'a plan of where mummy fell' in blue crayon. 'Pause and think on that,' she told the court. Elizabeth Young described the coronial inquest as 'harrowing' and said 'some people lost sight of the truly awful fact that six people are dead'. She said an accumulation of failures over many years led to Cauchi's murderous attack. Australia 'doesn't seem to want to acknowledge what happened was … categoric … years of neglect within our mental health system', at state and federal levels, she said. 'My daughter was murdered by an unmedicated chronic schizophrenic.' Referring to the senior counsel assisting the coroner, Peggy Dwyer SC, she said: 'Dr Dwyer referred to individuals doing their best in fallible systems.' 'I'm sorry, but it seems to me that my daughter and five others were killed by the cumulative failures … [of a] whole series of systems,' she said. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Elizabeth Young said if the inquest led to increased mental health funding and better security arrangements, 'all that would be good, but my daughter, my lovely, gentle daughter, is no more'. 'For me personally, no good will come from this inquest. She meant nothing to him, there is no comfort in closure, there is no way to make amends for what he took from me.' The coroners court heard Elizabeth Young couldn't stand loud places, flinches at noise, startles easily, no longer listens to music or has flowers at home, sleeps badly, was anxious about social occasions and 'dreads' Saturday afternoons. She also criticised how some members of the media had covered the attack. 'I learned a new phrase in the days after April 13: trauma porn,' she said. Peter Young, who lives in Hobart, said his sister was murdered by a man who was 'fuelled by his frustration [of] not finding a nice girl to marry – what a coward'. The five-week inquest, which began just over a year after the attacks, was scheduled to end on Friday. It has examined potential failings in Cauchi's healthcare, the preparedness of the shopping centre for an active armed offender and the response of the police, ambulance service and media.
News.com.au
5 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Daughter of Bondi stabbing victim Jade Young drew map of centre in crayon to show grandmother ‘where mum had fell'
The daughter of one of the women killed in the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing rampage drew a map of the centre in crayon to show her grandmother 'exactly where her mum had fell' after she was stabbed. Joel Cauchi, 40, killed six people and injured 10 during a stabbing rampage at the Westfield shopping centre in Sydney's east on April 13, 2024. Dawn Singleton, Yixuan Cheng, Faraz Ahmed Tahir, Ashlee Good, Jade Young and Pikria Darchia were all killed in the attack. A five-week coronial inquest into the deadly stabbings explored what could have been done differently at every level from Cauchi's treating psychiatrists, nurses and doctors in the years prior, to the response of emergency services and the centre's operator on the day of the tragedy. The inquest heard from the families of the victims on Thursday, with boxes of tissues placed throughout the court and the media room before proceedings began. Ms Young's mother, father, brother, husband, and dog all entered the witness box on Thursday morning, delivering heart wrenching statements to coroner Teresa O'Sullivan of their anger, anguish and grief. Her mother, Elizabeth Young, told the court how Ms Young was killed while her own daughter was by her side on the day of the attack. Ms Young's husband was at the shopping centre on the day and was threatened by Cauchi at one stage: he warned other shoppers Cauchi had a knife before he rushed to his wife and child. Their daughter had called him after Ms Young was stabbed. Ms Young's mother told the court on Thursday her granddaughter was 'so aware' of what had unfolded she once drew a map of the shopping centre's fourth floor in blue crayon after her mum was stabbed, to show her 'exactly where her mum had fell'. She invited the court to pause and reflect on this. The last time the mother interacted with her daughter was the morning of April 13, 2024, when she received a heart emoji to a photo she had sent her of a fairy ring of mushrooms. 'My absolute last connection with her, an emoji … ordinary interactions between a mother and daughter,' Ms Young told the court. 'Little over a week later I was leaning over her body here.' She said she has 'lost (her) way in life' following the death of her daughter, and flinches at people shouting in the street, startles easily, and can no longer listen to music or have flowers at home. She dreads Saturday afternoons, as that is when the tragedy unfolded. She said by the time she recovers from them 'it's 15.33pm on Saturday again'. 'I am angry and aggrieved and anguished for what I have lost … She has been denied a future,' Ms Young told the court. There is 'no way to make amends for what (Cauchi) took from me and my family.' She said suggestions people from various agencies were doing their best on the day of the attack provided little comfort to her. 'Dr Dwyer referred to individuals doing their best in fallible systems,' she told the court. 'I'm sorry but it seems to me that my daughter and five others were killed by the cumulative failures …(of a) whole series of systems.' She said Australia 'doesn't seem to want to acknowledge that what happened on that Saturday is essentially … the years of neglect of within our mental health systems, state and federal'. She aired her frustration with the reporting of the tragedy, including images of her daughter's 'lifeless body being worked on' broadcast, including by way of social media. Victim 'oblivious' to Cauchi's rampage A comprehensive statement from the NSW police officer who led the investigation into the fatal attack, Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Marks, gave a heartbreaking insight into how the events unfolded. It revealed details of the families' statements given to investigators. Ms Cheng was an only child from Bozhou, China. She was passionate about piano, taekwondo and dance. She studied economics at the University of New South Wales and returned to China due to the pandemic before she came back to NSW in 2023 after she was accepted into a masters of economics at the University of Sydney. She called her mother on the day of the fatal attack to tell her she was going shopping at Westfield Bondi Junction. About 6pm that evening Ms Cheng's boyfriend called her mother and told her about the incident, and that he couldn't get in touch with Ms Cheng. CCTV showed Ms Cheng walking through the centre on her phone, 'oblivious that what had been occurring in front of her'. She was stabbed by Cauchi and later died. Ms Young grew up in the Wollongong area and studied architecture. She and her husband lived in the UK for eight years and had two children together. She was shopping with her daughter on the day of the attack. Ms Young was meant to meet her husband, who was threatened by Cauchi at one stage. He warned other shoppers Cauchi had a knife. Ms Good, a former osteopath who had moved into a corporate role as executive years prior, was pushing her daughter in a pram when she was stabbed. 'After Mr Cauchi attacked Ms Good it caused her to stumble away from the pram,' counsel assisting the coroner Peggy Dwyer SC told the court. In a 'tremendous act', Ms Good was able to 'save her child's life'. Inspector Marks later said Ms Good should be awarded a posthumous bravery award for saving her child. Mr Tahir was working his very first shift at Westfield Bondi Junction when he was killed. He had five siblings and grew up in Pakistan before he moved to Sri Lanka in 2018 before moving to Australia in 2022. He moved to Adelaide and Brisbane before settling on Sydney. Mr Tahir had a video call with all his siblings the day before he died — his brother, Muzafar Ahmad Tahir, said in a statement that Mr Tahir was 'excited because he was wearing a uniform'. The court was told Mr Faraz and his colleague, Muhammad Taha, had 'moved towards the crowd to assess the situation and determine if there was any threat' that would need to be reported to the control room as the tragedy unfolded. Mr Tahir had turned towards his colleague after he was stabbed by Cauchi, giving Mr Taha 'a moment to brace himself'. 'Faraz demonstrated immense bravery and courage, sacrificing his life to protect others,' the court was told. Ms Darchia had two children and moved to Australia from Georgia in 2012. A statement from her best friend revealed Ms Darchia was studying at a prestigious art academy, undertook English courses, and enjoyed yoga. She had met her friends for lunch on April 13 before heading to the shopping centre, where she was stabbed by Cauchi. Ms Singleton was stabbed while she was waiting in line at the Sourdough Bakery. 'The first and youngest victim who was killed by Mr Cuachi was Ms Dawn Singleton. She was only 25 years old, and a much loved daughter, sister and fiance,' Ms Dwyer told the court. Bystanders rushed to Ms Singleton after she was stabbed and 'exposed themselves to danger' to stay with her, even after hearing gunshots. A man who came out of the nearby Country Road had wielded a chair and told those with Ms Singleton 'I'll fight (Cauchi) off if he comes back'. Coverage caused 'immeasurable pain' Families of the victims specifically requested the media response, and the impact this had on them, be probed during the course of the inquest after reporting 'significant distress' at the showing of graphic footage. Dawn Singleton's mother, Julie Martin, and her fiancee, Ashley Wildey, both reported they were upset to find Dawn had been identified in media reports before they were allowed to formally identify her. 'I had not seen her … I was still hoping at this point there had been some kind of horrible mistake,' Ms Martin's victim impact statement read. Ms Martin hadn't yet told Dawn's friends, one of whom found out from a media report while she was waiting for Dawn to pick her up for an event. Ms Martin also said she found reporters requesting comment, including by leaving notes in her mailbox, 'intrusive', and some of the footage played left her 'distraught'. Mr Wildey said the reporting of the attack caused 'immense and immeasurable pain' to he and Dawn's family.
