Breannon Pamela James and Jack Anthony Lee Campbell manslaughter charges dropped Townsville Magistrates Court
The case against two parents accused of manslaughter of their three-year-old child has been dropped after prosecution offered ‘no further evidence.’
The case against two parents accused of manslaughter of their three-year-old child has been dropped after prosecution offered ‘no further evidence.’
On day two of a hearing against the parents, police prosecutor Sam Stewart told the court the decision was made following evidence presented by Dr McGill and Ms Inwood in Wednesday’s hearing.
“The defendants were not made aware of the inherent risks that the condition posed, and that condition could cause the death if not managed properly,” he said.
“It’s on that basis that the prosecution have considered their position and are accordingly unable to persecute in good faith.”
Magistrate Viviana Keegan told the court the charges were dismissed.
Ms James and Mr Campbell could be seen hugging their barristers after leaving Townsville Magistrates Court on Thursday.
A spokesperson for the family said they could not comment further, but were happy with the outcome.
Hearing Day One
A leading witness in a court case against a Townsville mother and father charged over the death of their daughter said the parents would “not be expected” to recognise the medical symptoms their child was facing before death, a court has heard.
Breannon Pamela James and her husband Jack Anthony Lee Campbell appeared in Townsville Magistrates Court on Wednesday, represented by barristers Remy Kurz and Harvey Walters respectively.
The pair were charged with one count each of manslaughter after their three-year-old daughter Penelope Rose died in July, 2022, with police alleging their daughter’s death was preventable as her disorder was “totally treatable.”
On day one of a committal hearing into the case, three witnesses were called upon, including one of the doctors who attempted to resuscitate Penelope.
It was revealed in court Penelope lived with medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency, also known as MCAD deficiency, a potentially life-threatening genetic disorder that prevents the body from breaking down fats for energy.
The court heard Mr Campbell and Ms James were not informed their daughter did not eat while at daycare the day before her death, and the pair gave her a zooper dooper and a freddo, as she would often refuse to take a liquid that would give her the extra energy she needed.
The first witness, metabolic conditions expert Dr James McGill, said Penelope had thrown up not too long after, and was informed she “appeared normal” the next morning despite barely eating the night before and being hypoglycaemic in the morning.
“[Penelope’s parents] would not be expected to recognise an episode of hypoglycaemia,” he said.
Dr McGill said Penelope’s parents were already dealing with “a lot of stress” from managing their child’s disorder, and had taken every precaution to manage their daughter’s condition.
“Having a child with one of these life threatening disorders is very difficult for parents,” he said.
“One of my issues with this case is that the parents are parents, they have no training in the medical assessment of a child, and to me they are being judged as if they should.
“Medicine is grey, it’s not black and white.”
The court heard Penelope’s death is one of only two MCAD related deaths in Queensland since newborn screening was introduced.
Metabolic nurse practitioner Anita Inwood was called as the second witness, and when asked by Mr Kurz whether parents were ever disclosed the severity of their child’s MCAD, she said it would unnecessarily worry parents.
“No one from the service would ever have that conversation … that’s not something that any of us would do,” she said.
Ms Inwood also said she never had “any concern” that Mr Campbell and Ms James didn’t follow the sick day plan in place for their daughter.
“The family were following the sick day plan very well,” she said.
The third witness was Dr Olwen Gilbert, a senior pediatric emergency specialist and one of the doctors that tried to revive Penelope.
Dr Gilbert told the court high potassium levels were detected in Penelope’s blood after she went into cardiac arrest, but said levels were most likely a result of treatment for her cardiac arrest and not as a result of MCAD.
Police prosecutor Sam Stewart listed more than 50 witnesses that would be relied upon, with the majority being doctors, police and childcare workers.
The hearing will resume on Thursday morning.
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Originally published as Breannon Pamela James and Jack Anthony Lee Campbell manslaughter charges dropped Townsville Magistrates Court
