Veronica Nelson treated inhumanely before jail loss of life, prison officer concedes

CCTV shows Brown, nurse Atheana George and two different jail officers present Nelson with paracetamol though a cell entice door about 1.30am. It was the final time staff saw her alive.

During Brown’s nightshift, the coroner heard Nelson went on to make nine additional calls for assist over the jail intercom, including a remaining two conversations Lacy described as “haunting” and “chilling”. Nothing was heard from Nelson after 4am. Her physique was discovered later that morning.

Attending paramedics believed she had been useless for some time.

Taking to the witness stand for the first time on Friday after a failed Supreme Court struggle to suppress her identification, Brown revealed she now believed she should’ve accomplished extra to assist Nelson throughout her last hours.

Brown accepted she had a duty of care to Nelson and may have gone to test on the 37-year-old after the inmate turned unresponsive throughout her final intercom name. She additionally accepted Nelson was disadvantaged of “sufficient” medical care throughout her stay and not treated humanely.

The jail officer was additionally critical of the medical care supplied to inmates and the situation during which some arrived on the Yarra unit. She stated night nurses usually refused to walk the 200 metres from the medical unit to the Yarra unit to see patients in the course of the night time.

Jail officers will not be permitted to call triple zero and more senior staff would must be contacted to try this in any emergency, Brown mentioned.

An post-mortem later discovered Nelson had the undiagnosed medical condition Wilkie’s syndrome, a uncommon but doubtlessly life-threatening gastrointestinal condition.

Rishi Nathwani, representing Nelson’s mother, was vital of Brown’s motion and pressed the jail officer on an internal review that praised her actions.

Nathwani said within the assessment, Dame Phyllis Frost general supervisor Tracey Jones mentioned she was “proud” of the best way Nelson was handled in her remaining hours and that Brown “sensitively managed the intercom calls”.

Prison CCTV reveals Tracey Brown, far proper, attending Nelson’s prison cell alongside nurse Atheana George about 1.30am the day of Nelson’s death.

On the stand, Brown disagreed. Jones is because of give evidence next week.

Photographs and audio contained in this story had been launched to the media with permission from the family. For twenty-four/7 crisis support run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, contact 13YARN (13 92 76).