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Young boy with disabilities placed in house 'similar to a correctional facility' due to lack of secure care, whistleblower claims
A 12-year-old boy with a disability alleged to be the victim of indecent treatment in Cairns watch house has been flown to Brisbane and placed in housing "similar to a correctional facility", according to a whistleblower familiar with the case.
Warning: This story contains details some readers may find distressing.
The ABC understands the boy was placed in Wacol's forensic disability precinct in a house with alarms and an internal locking system, often used for people who demonstrate high-risk behaviour.
A whistleblower said the child's complex disability and mental health conditions had left the government with few accommodation options in lieu of a secure care model, which exists in other states like Victoria, Western Australia and New South Wales.
Secure care is a type of out-of-home care for children that are often at significant risk of harming themselves or others.
The child is receiving various supports and has access to education and recreational activities, according to the whistleblower.
"It's very problematic."
The boy has been deemed vulnerable to exploitation by peers and adults due to his complex background.
In February, ABC News revealed the boy was allegedly tormented by an older child for more than an hour and coerced to drink toilet water and urine.
Some of the details are too graphic to publish, but allegedly involved the boy being pressured to flush his head in the toilet, commit gross acts of indecency, drink toilet water, and lick his own vomit.
The Queensland Police Service (QPS) is reviewing the circumstances of the incident, which happened in a highly secure environment covered by CCTV, including audio recordings.
Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm stated there were no children in the Forensic Disability Unit, which is an adult facility located on the Wacol campus.
She would not confirm any further information about the boy's whereabouts or whether she had signed off on the decision.
"The Child Protection Act is very clear about what can and cannot be said about children who may or may not be in care," she said.
"I would be breaching the act if I commented further."
Sisters Inside chief executive Debbie Kilroy said it was "bizarre" for a 12-year-old to be transported from Cairns and placed in Brisbane's Wacol forensic disability precinct.
"It seems this has been cloaked in a veil of secrecy, what is going on?" Ms Kilroy said.
"There needs to be an independent investigation to ensure this boy is supported because he has such severe disabilities."
A model of "therapeutic secure care" was recommended "as a last resort" for children at significant risk of harm in the Carmody report as part of the 2013 Commission of Inquiry into Queensland Child Protection.
The commission's report, presented by Commissioner Tim Carmody, included 121 recommendations and provided a road map for the Newman Government to reform Queensland's child protection system over the next decade.
These included children who "regularly abscond" from care homes, who "put themselves in harm's way or at risk of harming someone else", "exhibit complex trauma", and "display serious risk-taking behaviour that leads to severe abuse and exploitation, particularly sexual exploitation".
"Responding to this group of children poses one of the toughest policy and practice tests for government," the report said.
Secure care was accepted in principle by the government of the day but more than a decade on, it has not been adopted.
Last September, the LNP committed to introducing a $50 million secure care facility by 2028 for children "with mental health needs who are a danger to themselves or others".
Premier David Crisafulli said at the time the focus would be 12 to 17 year olds, "ideally up to a month but with a court order it could be slightly longer".
"We firmly believe it is a great circuit breaker," he said.
The Carmody report said there should be some safeguards for secure care, including "as a minimum, the requirement that the department apply for an order from the Supreme Court to compel a child to be admitted to the service".
National Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds said there was a lot of work to be done Australia-wide with secure care, and there must be "strong independent monitoring and oversight" across the board.
Commissioner Hollonds said whenever children are deprived of their liberty, "whether it's in the youth justice system or child protection system, we have to adhere to the Convention on the Rights of the Child".
"There are principles …. that are about ensuring everything that's done is in the best interest of the child," she said.
There are no easy solutions, according to Commissioner Hollonds, who believes there should be a national approach to child justice and wellbeing to prevent "crime by children".
The Australian Human Rights Commission's "Help Way Earlier!" report called for a national task force where all jurisdictions would work together to reform child justice systems based on the evidence.
