Coronial
VIChome

Finding into death of Divesh Sharma

Deceased

Divesh Sharma

Demographics

5y, male

Coroner

State Coroner Judge Ian L Gray

Date of death

2012-04-28

Finding date

2015-05-08

Cause of death

unascertained

AI-generated summary

A 5-year-old boy and his sister (3 years old) and mother were killed by their father between 28-29 April 2012 in their Glen Waverley home. The father, who had experienced cognitive impairment and mood changes following a motor vehicle collision in December 2011, appears to have exposed the family to chloroform before suffocating them, then died by suicide. The family had unrecognised history of controlling and isolating behaviours by the father toward the mother. Critical lessons include: healthcare professionals seeing both spouses together may miss disclosure of family violence; family violence—including controlling behaviour—was not recognised; CALD communities may lack understanding of what constitutes family violence under Australian law; and multiple healthcare contacts post-injury provided no screening for suicide risk, homicide risk, or family violence despite cognitive decline and mood changes.

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

Specialties

rehabilitation medicineneurologygeneral practiceendocrinologypathology

Error types

communicationsystem

Drugs involved

chloroform

Clinical conditions

traumatic brain injurycognitive impairmentpost-concussive syndromedepression

Contributing factors

  • exposure to chloroform
  • smothering or suffocation
  • father's cognitive impairment following motor vehicle collision
  • father's mood changes and headaches post-injury
  • father's work-related stress and perceived inability to cope
  • unrecognised family violence and control by father over mother
  • cultural barriers to disclosure of family violence
  • lack of screening for suicide or homicide risk in healthcare encounters

Coroner's recommendations

  1. Increase awareness among police and family violence services of their role in addressing family violence within CALD communities to build trust and encourage help-seeking
  2. Provide clear, reliable information to CALD communities in a culturally appropriate way about what constitutes family violence under Australian law, including controlling and isolating behaviours
  3. Implement Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) provision of information to newly arrived migrants about the Australian legal system, including family violence-specific information
  4. Fund increased CALD-specific services at magistrates' courts
  5. Develop education programs for faith leaders given their position as role models in CALD communities
  6. Implement programs targeting international students on family violence and legal protections
  7. Provide education for newly arrived migrants through consulate offices and settlement providers
  8. Deliver culturally appropriate training for staff of organisations working with victims of family violence at point of crisis
  9. Engage CALD communities in changing behaviour and attitudes to reinforce gender equality
  10. Engage CALD media outlets to convey prevention messages on an ongoing basis
  11. Establish language-specific men's behaviour change groups for non-English speaking men of CALD backgrounds
  12. Improve systems to share information across sectors where men are identified as at risk to others
  13. Implement primary prevention strategies within CALD communities to prevent violence before it occurs through state and commonwealth government action
  14. Increase state and commonwealth funding for culturally appropriate family violence service delivery
Full text
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Source and disclaimer

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