(P) a thirteen year old girl

13y · Female·Multiple injuries due to motor vehicle accident

A 13-year-old Aboriginal girl in residential care absconded with a vehicle after an extended violent altercation with youth workers and died in a high-speed motor vehicle crash. She had extensive trauma history, PTSD, reactive attachment disorder and ADHD. The coroner found the youth workers acted appropriately and no police pursuit occurred. Key systemic issues included insufficient therapeutic residential care options, fragmented mental health services, lack of permanency planning, and inadequate assessment of cumulative harm. The Department made appropriate use of available services. Critical deficiencies were identified regarding therapeutic capacity, trauma-informed care, training standards for carers, and early intervention services—issues comprehensively addressed in the Carmody Report recommendations.