Young, Anthony William; Young, David Kenneth Baring; Dekens, Louise Alexandra
Deceased
Anthony William Young; David Kenneth Baring Young; Louise Alexandra Dekens
Demographics
42y, male
Date of death
2013-08-21
Finding date
2015-12-14
Cause of death
Anthony Young: multiple gunshot wounds to the body and arm; David Young: multiple stab wounds to the chest and head; Louise Dekens: stab wounds to the chest
AI-generated summary
Anthony Young, aged 42, shot by police after fatally stabbing his brother David and David's partner Louise. Anthony had deteriorating mental health including paranoia, substance use, and lack of psychiatric engagement despite family attempts to obtain help. Police responded appropriately within 9 seconds to an armed assailant with a machete posing imminent lethal threat. The coroner found the shooting justified and lawful. Key clinical lesson: Anthony had documented complex PTSD and substance abuse but was never formally diagnosed with psychotic illness and had no documented homicidal risk. No health professional anticipated violent risk. However, family members' repeated attempts to obtain mental health intervention were unsuccessful, and Anthony's resistance to professional help prevented engagement. The case highlights challenges in mental health assessment and intervention for individuals resistant to treatment.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Contributing factors
- deteriorating mental health in Anthony Young
- paranoid ideation and delusional thinking in Anthony Young
- substance abuse history
- lack of psychiatric engagement despite family attempts at intervention
- resistance to professional mental health treatment
- escalating tensions and anger in home environment
- access to weapons (machete and knives)
- inadequate availability of mental health records to QPS
Coroner's recommendations
- Further recommendations under s. 46 of the Coroners Act 2003 to be considered in the second phase of the inquest
- Implementation of body worn cameras service-wide by Queensland Police Service
- Review of QPS use of force model and training
Full text
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