The mother of a teenage girl who killed 10-year-old Biddy Porter in rural New South Wales in 2020 has told an inquest she did not understand mental health and consulted a naturopath instead of seeking psychiatric help for her daughter.
The teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was in acute psychosis due to schizophrenia at the time of the killing, according to two psychiatrists. The NSW Supreme Court found her not criminally responsible in 2021, and she remains in custody under the mental health review tribunal.
Descent Into Psychosis
Counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC outlined the teenager's worsening mental health before the killing, including self-harm, an interest in knives, and a sense of not feeling real. The girl had also slaughtered six chickens on the family property in June 2019, leading her parents to remove her bedroom door and break a video game.
When asked why she did not seek mental health support, the mother said it did not occur to her. 'Mental health was never on my radar,' she told the inquest. 'I never believed in mental health, I didn't understand mental health so it didn't come up to me as something I needed to do.'
The mother insisted she was only upset about the chicken killings because the hens were due to be culled and she had not given permission. 'I don't understand why that was such a big red flag,' she said.
Naturopath Consultation
Instead of consulting a doctor, the mother took her concerns to a naturopathic herbalist, who recommended magnesium for a suspected hormonal imbalance. The naturopath later advised seeing a doctor after the girl revealed intrusive thoughts about killing people.
A GP referred the teenager to a psychiatrist in Sydney, but the mother only found the referral in her email spam folder after the first day of the inquest. One week after the GP appointment, the teenager killed Biddy while the two were alone in the farm house.
Family Reactions
The teenager's maternal grandmother said she was alarmed by the chicken slaughter and urged the mother to seek psychiatric help. 'That was a little girl in crisis,' she told the inquest. 'The crisis was the fact she was extremely mentally disturbed, something had gone very wrong.'
The mother expressed regret over not understanding mental health and hoped Biddy's parents found peace. She said the loss of both Biddy and her daughter was heartbreaking.
Dwyer emphasized that the coroners court was not for blame but to learn from the tragedy. The inquest continues before NSW state coroner Teresa O'Sullivan.
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