The tragic murder of two South Australian children at the hands of their mother’s partner could have been prevented if they were removed from her care like their older brother, a court has heard.
Steven Graham Peet murdered his partner Adeline Yvette Wilson-Rigney and her two children, Amber Rose Rigney, 6, and her brother Korey Lee Mitchell, 5, on May 20, 2016.
Peet pleaded guilty to the triple murder and was handed a mandatory life sentence. He is serving his 36-year non-parole period.
At the time of the murders, Amber and Korey were living with their mother, 28, and Peet.
A post mortem found the children were strangled to death.
During the murder trial, the Supreme Court heard Families SA staff attended the Hillier property, north of Adelaide, either immediately before, or during, the crime.
A coroner’s inquest was launched on Tuesday to investigate the circumstances surrounding the children’s deaths and the involvement of the Department of Child Protection, formerly known as Families SA.
The inquest — before Deputy Coroner Anthony Schapel — was told two department workers attended the Hillier property just three hours before their bodies were found by police.
They knocked on the door and could not see anyone inside so they left.
During the opening remarks, counsel assisting Ahura Kalali detailed a long history of Ms Wilson-Rigney’s involvement with Families SA and the repeated notifications made about the care of her three children.
He told the court Amber and Korey’s older brother was removed from his mother’s care because he was in “serious danger”.
“His death had no doubt been prevented, not because of the unforeseeable risks posed by Peet, but due to risks if he continued to reside with his mother,” Mr Kalali said.
“So why then was not Amber and Korey removed to? Had Amber and Korey been removed from their mother, their deaths would also have been prevented.”
The court heard SA Police had been called to Ms Wilson-Rigney’s home — while she lived with their first partner — on at least four occasions for domestic violence related incidents.
According to Mr Kalali’s remarks, the parents punched and fought each other over their eldest son.
But, Families SA recorded “abuse not confirmed” on its file at the time.
The inquiry heard there was another occasion where Ms Wilson-Rigney contacted the boy’s grandparents, telling them to pick him up because she hit him with a broom and threatened to bash him if he stayed with her.
Mr Kalali said when Families SA received a “tier 2” notification about Ms Wilson-Rigney in November 2014, the department believed her eldest son was the main target of the abuse.
Tier 2 denotes a moderate to high risk of significant harm that requires a response within 10 days.
“That notification had no concerns for Amber or Korey … Families SA’s decision recorded there was excessive discipline or other minor behaviour directed towards the child,” Mr Kalali said.
The department received another notification when Ms Wilson-Rigney was drunk and arguing with a neighbour and was arrested by police, but the complaint was deemed “inefficient or vague”.
The inquiry heard the mother threatened her then-partner, who had his car stolen and blamed Ms Wilson-Rigney for it.
“Yvette threatened to hit him with a metal pole in front of the children and this behaviour was apparently not unusual,” Mr Kalali said.
The court heard Amber and Korey both suffered from a “severe” deficiency in speech and communication skills.
They were also often hungry at school because their mother “spends all money on drugs” and had trouble sleeping as their mother often left them with unknown people.
The children were either absent from school, noticeably late or made early departures.
“In one week, Amber attended school without food and water for three days,” Mr Kalali said.
A post-mortem toxicology examination found Ms Wilson-Rigney had methamphetamine, amphetamine and cannabis in her system at the time of her death.
It was also mentioned in the inquiry that Ms Wilson-Rigney was arrested by SA Police in January 2016 for assaulting her first born.
Mr Kalali told the court the mother informed authorities in February 2016 the family were homeless and slept in a tent or her car.
Families SA were notified and issued a “notifier-only concern”, which meant they didn’t suspect abuse or neglect.
Mr Kalali then referred to the Child Protection Act, which states: “A child is at risk if a child is under 15 years of age and is of no fixed address.”
Amber and Korey’s grandfather Steven Egberts and his partner Janet Wells sat in on the proceedings.
The inquest continues.
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