VIChome

Finding into death of Marzieh Rahimi

Deceased

Marzieh Rahimi

Demographics

33y, female

Coroner

State Coroner Judge Ian L Gray

Date of death

2007-11-20

Finding date

2015-01-08

Cause of death

Compression of the neck

AI-generated summary

Ms Marzieh Rahimi, a 33-year-old Afghan refugee, died from compression of the neck following an incident with her husband. She had disclosed a history of extensive physical, verbal, financial and emotional abuse. In the weeks before her death, she expressed intent to divorce, which Mr Azizi opposed. She made unsuccessful contact with emergency services and engaged family violence services, but critical opportunities were missed. When she reported violence and threats on 1 November 2007, caseworkers advised her to call police if further violence occurred rather than proactively assisting her to report or ensuring police attendance. Had she successfully connected with police and formalised protection, she may have been able to maintain safety for herself and her children.

AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes. Report an inaccuracy.

Specialties

psychiatrygynaecologyemergency medicine

Error types

communicationsystemdelay

Clinical conditions

postnatal depressionpost-traumatic stress disorderintimate partner violence

Contributing factors

Extensive history of family violence and control by intimate partner
Deceased's expression of intent to divorce triggering escalation of risk
Failed emergency call to 000 due to language barrier and lack of interpretation services at point of answer
Inadequate response from family violence caseworkers to reported violence and threats
Caseworkers did not proactively assist victim to report violence to police or ensure police attendance
Victim's limited English proficiency creating barrier to help-seeking
Unaddressed postnatal depression and post-traumatic stress disorder
Victim's cancelled appointment with family violence caseworker on 12 November 2007

Coroner's recommendations

Implementation of translation and interpretation services at the point of answer for 000 emergency calls to address language barriers for callers with limited English proficiency
Enhanced training and protocols for family violence caseworkers and counsellors to proactively assist victims to report violence to police when disclosed, rather than only advising them to do so
Strengthening of coordinated response protocols between family violence services and police to ensure appropriate intervention when family violence is reported

Full text

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