The mother of a teenage girl who killed 10-year-old Biddy Porter has told an inquest she 'didn't understand mental health' and sought help from a naturopath instead of a psychiatrist as her daughter descended into psychosis.
The 14-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, killed Biddy at a rural property in New South Wales on 8 July 2020. The NSW Supreme Court later found she was not criminally responsible due to mental illness.
The inquest at Lidcombe Coroner's Court heard the teenager had schizophrenia and was in acute psychosis at the time. Her mother told the hearing she consulted a naturopath, believing her daughter's behaviour—including killing animals and having visions—was due to a hormonal imbalance.
'Mental health was never on my radar,' the mother said. '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 court heard the teenager had confessed to her mother that she thought about killing people 'all the time' two weeks before the killing. A GP referral for a psychiatrist was found in the mother's spam folder after the inquest began.
The inquest continues before State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan.
