By Emily Woods
A child previously charged with murder says she doesn’t like waking up every day and seeing the same four walls, and has pleaded to be allowed outside.
However, the 13-year-old girl’s requests were rejected on Monday as an application to continue holding her in a secure facility for another six months was approved by the Supreme Court.
An application to continue holding the 13-year-old in a secure facility has been approved by the Supreme Court.Credit: Fairfax Media
The girl, known under the pseudonym WD, has been held in secure accommodation since being charged with the murder of a woman at a Footscray apartment when she was 12, in November 2023.
Prosecutors withdrew the murder charge in May because there was no reasonable prospect of conviction under the presumption of doli incapax.
Doli incapax is the presumption that a child aged under 13 is incapable of understanding the wrongfulness of their actions, and therefore cannot be convicted of a crime.
The girl remains under the care of the secretary of the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, which applied for her placement to be extended and for police to be involved in her medical appointments.
A lawyer for the secretary said on Monday there had been an “aggravation and deterioration” of the child’s behaviour in care recently.
She said WD had assaulted staff at the facility, and staff requested police help escort the child to medical appointments.
Justice James Elliott asked whether it would be possible for the girl to be released into the community to allow her to “to go into nature”, perhaps at a halfway house.
“It’s a long time for a young person to be secured in one place,” he said.
“You’ve got to give her some access to an environment outside.”
But the secretary’s lawyer said WD’s risk to community safety was too high given her recent behaviour.
WD’s lawyer said he met her on Friday, and she said she “doesn’t like waking up every day seeing the same wall, same floor, same things”.
“She has said to me she’d like to do the sorts of things she sees her contemporaries doing – spending time together, go out from where she is,” he told the court.
He said the pendulum had swung in the child’s life as she had gone from inadequate supervision to a very tight structure in secure housing.
“We are trying to strike the balance,” he said.
Elliot extended WD’s placement in secure housing for another six months due to the risk she continues to pose to the community.
He approved police involvement in her medical appointments, and said he would revisit the girl’s requests for release when she returned to court in June 2025.
“Despite recent regressions, WD has made steady progress.”
In October, Victoria’s Commissioner for Children and Young People said the girl’s case exposed some of the “most profound services system failures” as she was repeatedly failed by the state.
The commissioner found opportunities had been missed at every stage of the girl’s childhood and care, and mental health, disability support, policing and justice systems had all failed to meet her needs.
AAP
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.